Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 114; Jeremiah 32:36-44; Matthew 13:31-35; 1 Corinthians 14:13-25; Psalm 79
Over the past twenty-five years, mega-churches have taken over the religious landscape in the United States. One of the sad by-products of this is that many Christians have come to equate bigger with better/more faithful. As a result, lots of small churches have developed inferiority complexes. They have come to assume they can’t have an impact on the world because of their limited size. Unfortunately this “bigger is better” dynamic doesn’t just get played out in the life of religious institutions. It has crept over into our private lives as well. Many of us think that the only “movers and shakers” that can truly make a difference in the world are those with lots of money and/or status. Over time we begin to accept the belief that our little lives won’t really make that much of a difference. If that’s what you’re thinking, then today’s Gospel passage will give you another perspective on life. Today’s Gospel passage began with the parable of the mustard seed. And what that parable reminds us is that the scope of our lives shouldn’t be determined by the resources that WE can manage – no, the scope of our life is determined by our willingness to plant that proverbial mustard seed in our lives and then let it do what that seed does naturally: grow! The question for us to wrestle with today then isn’t, “What difference can my life really make?”; the question is, “Will I plant that seed in my field and then watch it grow?” Til next time…
Over the past twenty-five years, mega-churches have taken over the religious landscape in the United States. One of the sad by-products of this is that many Christians have come to equate bigger with better/more faithful. As a result, lots of small churches have developed inferiority complexes. They have come to assume they can’t have an impact on the world because of their limited size. Unfortunately this “bigger is better” dynamic doesn’t just get played out in the life of religious institutions. It has crept over into our private lives as well. Many of us think that the only “movers and shakers” that can truly make a difference in the world are those with lots of money and/or status. Over time we begin to accept the belief that our little lives won’t really make that much of a difference. If that’s what you’re thinking, then today’s Gospel passage will give you another perspective on life. Today’s Gospel passage began with the parable of the mustard seed. And what that parable reminds us is that the scope of our lives shouldn’t be determined by the resources that WE can manage – no, the scope of our life is determined by our willingness to plant that proverbial mustard seed in our lives and then let it do what that seed does naturally: grow! The question for us to wrestle with today then isn’t, “What difference can my life really make?”; the question is, “Will I plant that seed in my field and then watch it grow?” Til next time…
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