Luke Pearson

Dear friends,

One of my favorite activities to do when I was a young boy was go on scavenger hunts. During the weekends my father would wake up early and drive to a hiking trail that was about five miles away from my childhood home. In his car he had little bags of candy and pieces of colorful string. When he arrived at the hiking trail he would hide the bags of candy between bushes and under rocks, and then he tied the pieces of string in tree branches near as indications to where the candy was hidden.

After my father hid all of the candy, he wrote little clues on a piece of paper, and headed back to our home to gather me and my brothers. When he arrived back home he got us out of bed, and said that we were going to go on a “Candy Hunt”, and we had to go as quickly as possible before all of the candy was gone. As you can imagine, the words “Candy” and “Hunt” sounded too good to be true for my brothers and I, so we quickly put on our shoes and hopped in our family car.

When we arrived at the hiking trail, my father gave each one of us a piece of paper with a clue written inside. He told us, “I have hidden three bags of candy, one for each of you. You have to follow the clues written on the piece of paper in order to find the hidden candy. Once you have found your bag, make sure you help your other brothers find theirs.” With anticipation and excitement we agreed, and as soon as my father unlocked the car door, my brothers and I jumped out of the car and we were off on our “Candy Hunt”.

The clue that was written on my piece of paper was, “Find the large Oak at the end of the trail; look by its roots and you will not fail.” I quickly rushed along the narrow trail as I looked for a large Oak tree. Then I saw the tree in the middle of the path, with its large roots that slithered in the dirt like snakes. I looked between the roots and saw a bright bag filled with an assortment of delicious treats. I was elated that I had found my bag of candy, and I wanted to let my brothers know as soon as possible.

When I ventured back to find them, I heard my four year old brother Thomas crying in the distance. Zach, my youngest brother, and I followed the sound of his voice. When we found him, he was standing alone with a devastated expression on his face. He held a ripped bag in his hand, and there were candy wrappers littered across the ground. Unfortunately for Thomas, an animal had ripped into his bag and eaten all of his candy.

All of a sudden, Thomas stopped crying as Zach approached him. Zach opened up his own bag of candy that he found and poured out each piece into Thomas’s hand. Zach had remembered my Dad’s instructions that once we found our own bags, we would help our brothers find theirs. In that moment, Zach gave all that he had to show his brotherly commitment to Thomas. We began the scavenger hunt looking for bags of candy, but in the end we found forms of benevolence that were manifested in acts of love.

In today’s Daily Office Gospel, Jesus compares the kingdom of heaven to hidden treasure. He states, “The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.” Jesus is trying to be as transparent as possible to his followers through the usage of parables. These types of parables are used to both heighten his followers' understanding about God’s purpose, as well as to conceal the truth from those who rebuked him.   

Christ is stating that we must embark on a journey to seek out God’s kingdom. The kingdom of heaven is a magnificent treasure, but it is hidden. The kingdom of heaven is palpable, but it becomes more available to those who search for it, or in this case, stumble upon it. The questions that arise from this parable are, what do we do when we find this treasure? Where do we go from here?

Fortunately, Jesus provides us with instructions. He says that when we find the treasure, we must keep it safe. The man who finds the treasure does not steal it from the ground but keeps it hidden. Then through his resourcefulness, he goes to great lengths in attaining the kingdom of heaven by giving up all that he has to secure it.  

Every time I read this parable about the hidden treasure, there is one word within it that stands out to me. That word is joy. The man who finds the treasure is filled with joy in every step of his journey. He is joyful when he initially finds the treasure because it is a welcomed surprise to him. He is joyful in selling all that he has to purchase the field because the kingdom of heaven has become the man’s main priority. When God’s grace is bestowed to us and we are lucky enough to find it, it is a joyous occasion.

Through this parable, we are led into our own spiritual scavenger hunt. We enter into the journey God has paved for us with anticipation and excitement. Christ provides us with clues on how to find and keep the kingdom of heaven in his lessons. God is committed to us, and implores us to be committed to each other. With joyful hearts, minds and spirits we must give all that we have for God and for our neighbor through acts of love. We are all part of the Body of Christ, and so we all have a part in forming God’s kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. It is a wonderful truth that each one of us is beloved, and treasured in God’s eyes.    

Best,
Luke