Today’s Reading: Mark 4:26-29 NRSV
The Kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground …and the seed would grow, he does not know how…Mark 4:26-27
The story is told of a farmer who was standing beside his many acres of ripening corn, admiring the crop soon to be harvested. A preacher came by and said to the farmer, “What a magnificent crop – how God has blessed you.” To which the farmer replied, “God has indeed blessed me, but you should have seen the field when God was working it alone.”
In this parable Jesus makes it clear that living in the Kingdom of God is a partnership between each of us and the Almighty. We are called to plant the seeds of God’s love through our actions with the assurance that by doing so we will make a meaningful difference with our lives. But like the farmer in the parable, the results will often occur without us understanding how that happens. The actions of God remain a mystery that is beyond human comprehension. We live in the Kingdom by faith alone.
Still, as the farmer notes, without our involvement, God’s actions are limited by the absence of faithful living. So, the parable challenges us to deliberately seek the guidance of God as we work to live our lives as Disciples. Our job is planting the seeds of the Kingdom each day by demonstrating the power of Divine Love through our relationships with each person we meet. Even the smallest acts of kindness [remember the mustard seed parable] can make a great deal of difference in the life of someone we encounter each day. Ours to plant the seeds knowing that God will ensure the growth.
So, today’s challenge: Where can I plant a seed today?
Reflections 