Skip to main content

Even Little Things...


Third Friday in the Ordinary Time, Cycle C, Year 1
 

TODAY'S GOSPEL (Mark 4:26-34), the Lord tells the gathering crowd two parables--the parable of the self-growing seed (another sower parable) and that of the mustard seed. He explains how it is in the Kingdom of God; how even little things count... little seeds grow on their own, and which can grow into so huge a tree, in fact, becomes the largest of the plants in the garden and even grows branches so big that the birds of the sky can take shelter in its shade (v. 32). And the sower does not have to do anything to make the seeds grow; nay, he does not even have to understand how that happens. Each little seed plant will grow on its own nourished by a power that takes care of all things created, that loves all things created.
 
Portiuncula, the small portions... The Lord intimates to us that even little things we do matter; that even little things we do count. He does not call us to be great giants in society. He simply calls us to be effective receivers of his love, effective conduits through which the love of God flows to others through us. That's where our greatness as sons and daughters of God lies; where God calls us to be.
 
The Lord reveals to us that even little things... a sincere smile; a gentle pat at the back; a simple flick in the brows that tells one another, "I notice you, brother/sister. And I'm glad that I met you today"... can be like mustard seeds that can grow into huge and fruitful trees of love in others, so huge that other people too can find shelter in their times of need when done as an outward expression of the inner impulse of an overflowing love of God for others. We all are sowers, and all we have to do is sow, and the Lord will take care of the harvest.
 
So, we do not have to worry about the harvest. In fact, we do not have to worry at all. Because in the Kingdom of God, which already exists among us, the grace of God abounds, penetrating the very pores of our being, changing everything that prevents us from encountering God, ensuring that with our consent God's love flows into our hearts and beings like a gentle tsunami of boundless graces.
 
All we have to do is let ourselves be loved by God, and let that love guide us in everything that we do each day for the rest of our lives. His burden is light... as light as a child embraced and carried in the arms of his Father.
 
FATHER, thank you for the overflowing love that you pour upon us each moment each day for the rest of our lives. Let it transform us into channels of your love for others so that they too may grow like the mustard seeds whose trees can become the refuge of the downtrodden, of the neglected, of the desperate souls in this world, in those moments that they have started losing hope in the burdens they carry. May your love consume this world and transform it into the Kingdom of Love you meant it to be.
 
LORD, thank you for the Presence you have bestowed upon us each moment through the Holy Spirit. Thank you for the unlimited resource of wisdom and joy that you made available to us when you left the earth as you ascended back home to the Father. Thank you for leaving us the Church, frail as she is, in order to guide us and keep us grounded to your authentic teachings through your Twelve Apostles. May we live up, through your grace, to the call that you have given to us from the moment of our conception. May we become effective soldiers in your Kingdom of Love. Amen. 
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular Posts

Central Expressions of Love

1st Tuesday of Lent Feast of Saint Conrad of Piacenza IN TODAY'S GOSPEL (Matthew 6:7-15) the Lord taught the crowd the right way to pray to the Father, the prayer Christians later named as the Lord's Prayer . He taught prayer as a child talking to his father. The first part of the prayer must be an expression of worship to the Father-- may your name be held holy (v.9)--and an affirmation of our commitment to follow His will in our lives-- your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven (v. 10). The second part consists of addressing our need for help to physically survive-- give us today our daily bread (v. 11)--to be forgiven for our transgressions-- And forgive us our debts, as we have forgiven those who are in debt to us (v. 12)--and to be spared from the temptation of the devil-- And do not put us to the test, but save us from the evil one (v. 13).   The center of this prayer that Jesus taught his disciples is the love of God and our fitting response to...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Surprises of God

29 Wednesday in Ordinary Time IN TODAY'S GOSPEL (Luke 12:39-48), the Lord disclosed to the disciples a characteristic of God's will--it comes as it wills, and without warning--in the same way that the Holy Spirit will, later on, behave towards the young Christian church.   Some people may understand such unpredictability as "unfair" because it does not allow enough time for a person to prepare himself to meet the Lord. It is like giving an extemporaneous speech, a minute or two before you have to deliver it before a crowd of critics.   But there is a beauty in the delightful surprises that the Lord pulls on us almost all the time. It puts our lives into unending excitements over limitless lack of expectations. It brings us naked before the Lord, free from all the masks and pretensions that adults have learned to acquire through the years in their dealings with fellow human beings. It allows us to tell the Lord: "Here I am, Lord, today. All that I have ...
Post a Comment
Read more

In God's Loving Care

Seventh Saturday of Easter TODAY'S GOSPEL (John 21:20-25) tells of a final scene before the Lord ascended into Heaven. As the newly appointed leader of the Church that would take care of the Lord's sheep  when He physically goes back to His Father, Peter had started thinking of maximizing the Apostles and disciples under him in order to reach as many Jews and Gentiles as possible. But obviously, he had nothing in mind for the beloved apostle, John. So he asked the Lord, what about him? And the Lord replied: What if I want him to remain until I come? What concern is it of yours? The Lord concluded His response with an exhortation for Peter to do instead: You follow me .  In this account from John, the Lord reminds us of the primacy of God's will as the purpose of our lives. He tells us that our vocations are personal calls of a personal God. And only the person being called can exactly understand that call.  Neither must we concern ourselves for the fut...
Post a Comment
Read more