Sunday Readings
Never become discouraged. The growth may be slow, but God will surely nurture it to blossom if you are committed to doing His Will.
My Dearest Friends in Christ ,
Welcome to the Ordinary Time of the year. The green color of this season symbolizes growth. It is therefore a time we grow in faith in the ordinariness of our daily life. Today is a Sunday of Divine Encouragement. God speaks to us, His children, to strengthen us in our faith struggle so that we don’t get discouraged when we think our faith is not yet strong and our life’s struggles are not yielding immediate great returns.
As humans, it is natural to expect immediate or great returns on investments or significant results in any area of life’s endeavors. For example, preachers may expect the immediate conversion of their listeners;m or parents may expect immediate change from their wayward children. Teachers may not be patient with slow learners; those in relationships may also expect an immediate change in the habits of their partner. These are all human expectations that often hurt because we lack the patience to wait. Many get discouraged or quit when there is no visible impact of what they are doing. Many have taken to the worldly philosophy of ‘get it fast today, tomorrow may be too late .’
Today my dear friends, the Word of God challenges our beliefs and assumptions while teaching us how in the realm of Divine Operation the seed of faith grows slowly, but steadily, until it blossoms. The parable of the mustard seed is one of the didactic approaches Jesus uses to instruct His first disciples, and us, to help us not to feel discouraged when the expected outcome of our struggles is minimal or contrary to our expectations. It is a parable Jesus uses to describe the growth of God’s Kingdom and the growth of faith in our lives. This parable should also inspire our struggles in life.
Good and lasting results do not come quickly. Like the mustard seed, they grow slowly and often are not noticeable in the beginning but continue to grow. We have to be patient while not losing our commitment to doing the good God expects from us. I once had an experience with a Samsung phone many years ago that taught me the virtue of waiting for a little longer when the seemed not to be functioning. I didn’t know what had happened to the phone’s battery as it was completely drained. As usual, I charged it for 25 minutes , yet there was no sign of charging, not even on the battery charging indicator. At that point, two things came to my mind. It’s either the charger is bad or the battery is dead. I decided to go first for the least expensive solution which was to buy a new charger. I bought the charger and yet it didn’t charge the battery. Then, I went for the second solution. I took the phone to a repair shop and they told me to replace the battery which I did. The new battery fixed the problem with the old charger charging it. It now occurred to me that the charger wasn’t the problem but at that time it was already too late to return the new charger. Since the charger wasn’t the problem, I became optimistic that the old OEM battery might still be in good shape, so I gave it one more final trial. This time, I left it to charge beyond 25 minutes and not with a generator. 30 minutes into charge time, the battery charging indicator miraculously showed up and the battery kept charging until it was fully charged. I was happy yet sad because of all the money and time wasted. Still curious to find out what had happened, I made further research and discovered that the battery had been completely drained and needed a fast charger and more time on a stable power supply to charge again. I am telling this story because while I thought nothing was happening as the phone was plugged in to charge, something not visible nor noticeable was actually going on, but needed time and patience to show up at the proper time. I blamed myself for all the money wasted but learned to be a little more patient when things seem not to be working out quickly. Yes, something is happening but it will slowly show up, so don’t rush into finding solutions or become discouraged at doing the good you should be doing.
Today Jesus speaks to us about the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is the growth of God’s rule in human hearts that occurs when a person does the Will of God and surrenders their life to God. The seed of faith lies dormant within each of us. When we permit the Holy Spirit to nurture it with TLC (tender loving care), it grows miraculously into gigantic proportions. The growth is slow and microscopic in the beginning; but the seed grows by using the power of the Holy Spirit, given to us through the Word of God, the Mass, the sacraments and prayer. As we learn God’s Will from His Words and try to put these Words into practice, we participate in the growth of God’s Kingdom on earth, a growth that will be completed in our Heavenly life. If there is anything that nurtures the life of God in us, it is God’s Word.. We die spiritually when we ignore, pay deaf ears or avoid living by God’s Word and live by our own standards. In the Word of God we discover God’s Will. The Holy Spirit is the vital and animating force that enables the growth of God’s Word in man (our growth in faith) and the transformation of our lives.
The first reading taken from the prophecy of Ezekiel ( Ez 17:22-24,) is a Messianic prophecy. Ezekiel tells us how the Lord God of Israel will send a descendant of King David as His Messiah and the Saviour of the world. In contrast with the parable of the tiny mustard seed in today’s Gospel, Ezekiel sees the Messiah originating in a royal family (lofty Cedar, David).
In the second reading, St. Paul teaches the Corinthian Christians that they are to advance the growth of God’s Kingdom and His rule in their lives by doing His will because at the last day they shall receive recompense for whatever good or evil they did while still here on earth in their mortal bodies.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus compares the growth of the Kingdom of God to the germination of a wheat seed and that of a tiny mustard seed. Both have very small beginnings. The wheat seeds by gradual but steady growth, give the farmer a bumper crop. In the same way, a tiny mustard seed by gradual growth becomes a large shrub. The reign of God in human hearts and the growth of the Church in the world also have small beginnings. The source of all life, the Holy Spirit, gives them both a steady, persistent and gigantic growth, provided we cooperate with His Grace..
My dearest, do not be shy to accept a lowly beginning. Do not be discouraged to start it small. God does not expect too much from you. He wants your commitment to the little you have just begun. A farmer does not give up on the tiny grain of corn he planted but continues to water and nurture it until it grows. God has planted His Word in our lives so we need to nurture it while He grants the increase. Greatness is not achieved in a day, it is a product of lifelong struggle, commitment, and persistence. The parable of the mustard seed lends credence to the adage which says “Slow and steady wins the race.”
Therefore, since the acceptance of God’s rule by human beings is a very slow process, there is the danger of discouragement and hopelessness among preachers, teachers, evangelizers, and believers. The conviction that the growth of the Kingdom of God is the work of the Holy Spirit with our humble cooperation should make us optimistic in continuing our work of witnessing. We should continue sowing tiny seeds in the form of words of love, acts of encouragement, deeds of charity, mercy, and forgiveness. St. Paul admonishes us to walk by faith and not by the sight of what appears to be visible.
May God’s Word blossom in our lives. May the seed of faith in us germinate into a strong and unshakeable faith through Christ our Lord.
I keep you and your family always in my prayers.
Your faith grows in the measure it is nutured by the Word of God, the Sacraments and Prayer.
