VIDEOCAM tricks now allow us to see the wonder of the unfolding of the parts of a plant from a mere seed. Reality, of course, is not like that. You may watch for hours the seed you have just planted; you will not catch a glimpse of the growth that is going on. But if you come back two or three days later, you will be amazed at the new shoots or buds that have come out.
The Kingdom of God, Jesus says, is like that: you may not notice its growth, you may even think it is not growing, but it surely is. Hence, we need to trust and be patient when we do not see the manifestations of God’s power. God seems to prefer working secretly but surely. God’s works often come unnoticed, starting from tiny beginnings, like a mustard seed.
Are we patient enough to wait for the signs of the Kingdom even if they seem very slow in coming? Do we trust in God’s power to realize the divine plans for the world?
Gospel: Mk 4:26-34
Jesus said to the crowds: “This is how it is with the Kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come.”
He said, “To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.
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SOURCE: “365 Days with the Lord,” ST PAULS, 7708 St. Paul Rd., SAV, Makati City (Phils.); Tel.: 895-9701; Fax 895-7328; E-mail: [email protected]; Website: http://www.stpauls.ph.
