Kristin Tovar
“Again, he said, ‘What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.’”
—Mark 4:30-32
Dear friends,
Learning that today’s reading included the Parable of the Mustard Seed sparked a certain sense of giddiness. You see, on my bookshelf at home, I have a miniature glass container holding several mustard seeds as a constant reminder of the kingdom of God’s modus operandi. Visuals work wonders for me.
The way growth happens in the kingdom often stands in direct opposition to what culture tells us is the foolproof way of growth. When we look at the values of American culture and the marketplace, we see an emphasis on efficiency, speed, and rapid growth.
The way of the seed, however, is slow. It involves patience and trust in the unseen, the mysterious workings of growth beneath a covering of soil. There will be many days when we wonder if anything is happening at all. This pace would never survive in a boardroom or a shareholders’ meeting where visible results are demanded. In this way, we are called to embody a counter-cultural way of living.
The kingdom offers no shortcuts, which leads me to wonder what other practices our culture might call inefficient? Prayer comes to mind. There is a focus on outward action and rapid responses. These are not wrong; however, what greater fruit might they yield if they were first bathed in prayer? If we were readied internally before the call to action ever came knocking?
Asking the Spirit to make us more Christ-like feels similar. Our formation begins on the inside and moves outward like the seed and its eventual trunk and branches that spring forth from that initial imperceivable growth. Love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control, these fruits of the Spirit, reveal themselves as we spend time in prayer with God, the Scriptures, and draw near others seeking to live in the Way of Christ. Often, this looks like cultivating a practice of stillness.
Ultimately, we leave the impact of our seeds to the Grower, who can take our smallest investments and acts of faith and turn them into places of unimaginable healing and power for the benefit of all. Our only job is to be faithful in our role as planters. So, what seeds can we plant today?
May we have both the patience to begin in prayer and the courage to let that prayer lead to sustained, life-giving action in our community and beyond.
In Love,
—Kristin
