When Seeds Grow Up

Pastor’s Column

11th Sunday in Ordinary Time

June 13, 2021

“To what shall we compare the kingdom of God?

It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground it 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.”

Mark 4:26-34

As some of you may remember, when I first arrived here the rectory had very little landscaping, so I got busy planting things, too many, actually. A mailer from the Arbor Society then arrived offering this deal where you send them a donation and they would send you twelve trees, six different kinds. That seemed unbelievable to me, so out of pure curiosity, I sent them a small donation and a small box arrived a few weeks later that had 12 small twigs in it, each less than 4 inches tall. With no idea which was which, I planted them all over the place. In the end, only one survived, but it is doing quite well, and it turned out to be my favorite tree, a white dogwood. It has even survived needing to be replanted after the road was put in two years ago and it is taller than the house now!

What kind of seeds am I planting each day? Are they seeds of kindness or selfishness? Seeds of purity or impurity? We need to be striving for purity in order to see God rather than planting the seeds of our own destruction! Be careful what you plant in the ground. For example, if I am planting in pornography, I may end up with a big tree of impurity, anger, passions that I cannot control, shame and, quite possibly, a broken marriage. If I am planting seeds of unkindness, I may end up with a worthless tree of selfishness that is all about me, worthless to God or anyone else. What seeds does God wish to plant in your soul or life? Your whole future may depend on the planting of some seed of conversion or in a small act of goodness in someone else's life.

It will only be at the last judgment that we will fully see the effects of what we have done, and the Lord makes it very clear that small things matter a very great deal. How I treat other people is absolutely essential. What other people may think of me, my status or wealth, getting my own way, being important, having a successful or a pain-free life, these mean nothing to God. What wonders may grow in our lives and others from the smallest of beginnings if only we allow the Holy Spirit to plant the seeds! God is often in the smallest, and at first, seemingly unimportant details of our lives.

Now that we know what God wants, how easy it is to plant a garden that we will be proud to present to the Lord on the last day of our lives, a garden that will outlast us and that will benefit others long after we have moved on. What seeds am I planting? What kind of tree will emerge in the end?

Father Gary