Word to the Wise
Friday, February 1, 2008 - Friday in the Third Week of Ordinary Time
[2 Samuel 11:1-4A, 5-10A, 13-17 and Mark 4:26-34]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.
Gardening is one of my favorite hobbies. While I don't have a lot of success with indoor plants, I seem to do OK with outdoor plants. However, because I like to grow things from seed instead of buying them "ready grown" at the nursery, I try to get a jump start on the growing season by starting some plants indoors. Last year I decided to try my hand at growing petunias. I happened to ask at a local nursery if the owner had any seed. He told me that he didn't know anyone who grew petunias from seed because it takes about 10 weeks to get them to a size for transplanting! I took this for a challenge and ordered some seed from a mail order company. When I got the seed, I realized the truth of the nurseryman's comment and the truth of Jesus' parable. Petunia seed are about the size of a speck of dust! No wonder they take so long to grow! Yet the results were really wonderful. God can use the smallest and most "insignificant" gesture to accomplish wonderful things. Sometimes we have to wait a long time for an effort of ours to bear fruit. We may have to take care of the little plant with small ways of caring for weeks till one day we see the buds begin to form. Impatience can cause a lot of harm. Too much care can cause a lot of harm. Not enough care can cause a lot of harm. It is a matter of learning what each kind of plant needs and then letting nature and God do the rest. What we cannot do without is the planting itself. That is the act of hope! It sets everything else in motion. If we omit that small gesture or fail to repeat it, there will be no results. Jesus' parable is a reminder of the importance of that small effort. AMEN
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