It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” (Luke 13:21).
I have been reflecting on seeds.
My eldest son is an avid gardener. He simply enjoys pottering about in the garden planting things and watching them grow. Often, when I slice a piece of fruit, he will ask me for a few seeds and take them away to see what he can get them to do. And I have to admit – as someone who has no talent in the garden at all – I find the whole process of watching him work with nature to make things grow, fascinating!
And I have been thinking about that process of gardening as I have been reflecting on the Gospel over the last few days. You see, Christ taught the parable of the mustard seed, where He said, “What is the kingdom of God like? And to what shall I compare it? It is like a grain of mustard seed which a man took and sowed in his garden; and it grew and became a tree, and the birds of the air made nests in its branches.” (Luke 13:18-21).
And I have been reflecting on that mustard seed, because the mustard plant is very very slow growing. It is the sort of plant where the seed will be planted and it takes so long to grow that it must surely at tmes appear that it will never bear fruit…
The seed is planted in the soil, and after some time, a few leaves sprout. Surely it must seem that they could be weeds, but a careful gardener will wait patiently and see what can happen in that garden. The seed is exposed to many challenges as it grows. There is the sun and the heat, There is the cold and the snow. There is even – at times – the drought. And yet, through it all, the seed grows steadily provided it has water…
And this reminds me of Saint Paul the Apostle… You see, Saint Paul received the vision at Damascus and then what happened? Well he followed the instructions he was given and sought out Ananias and then what did he do? Did he rush out to meet the apostles and begin to preach? Did he go out and seek out Christian communities and start to work with them? No. Instead, Sacred Tradition suggests that Saint Paul went out into the wilderness for a period of between 3 and 10 years following his conversion. And he went out alone. And this is sort of like the mustard seed. Because Saint Paul needed time for the Holy Spirit to work in him.
And I have been reflecting on that today, as I rush about my work. For there is great value to be had in staying still and staying quiet… For it is during the times of drought, when I feel that my Beloved is most far away from me, that He is in fact speaking, very quietly inside my ear. And when that happens, that is when I am most loved – just like the seed, beneath the soil, waiting for the rain…
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.
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