Strengthen the Hands That Are Weak
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“The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower. All who come to him will live forever.” Jn 12:31B-32
In today’s Gospel Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a tiny mustard seed, hidden in the earth, quietly sprouting and growing until becomes a tree large enough to provide shade for the birds in its branches. It’s a hopeful parable, which helps us to realize that even the tiniest, hidden efforts we make for the kingdom of God can grow in the same way.
Those who seek to do God’s work must trust in His help to make it fruitful. Because we walk by faith and not by sight in this world, we may not see the harvest, but we must not become discouraged. Instead we must hope, pray, and faithfully do our small part, scattering the seed of God’s word far and wide. If just one of those seeds takes root, it can become the large branching tree that provides shade and shelter, providing seasoning for life, and producing new seed for the next planting.
Jesus Himself gives us the example of how we are to spread the Good News. He showed us the way, when He became the grain of wheat that fell into the earth and died to produce the bread of eternal life. His disciples are called to follow Him to the cross and martyrdom, rather than to earthly glory and power. In the same way, His Church grew in darkness and obscurity, persecuted and maligned, to form a great, branching tree that provides shelter for the faithful.
It rumored that Pope Benedict XVI once said, “I have a mustard seed, and I’m not afraid to use it.” If we have faith even the size of a mustard seed, we must not be afraid to scatter a multitude of tiny seeds in as many fields as we can, with prayer and trust that God will take it from there and use our small efforts to produce abundant fruit for the Kingdom.
Born and raised in a faithful Catholic family, I wandered far from my faith for nearly two decades. Through the infinite mercy of Christ and His Church, I found my way back home to the Catholic Church in the early 90s, and began a path of rediscovery of the beauty and truth of the Catholic faith, eventually earning a Bachelor's degree in Christian Tradition. A stay-at-home Mom for many years, my Church ministries grew to include teaching Catechism and First Eucharist classes, writing and facilitating retreats for healing after abortion, and becoming active in pro-life work with our local 40 Days for Life campaign in the Tri-Cities, Washington as an organizer, participant, speaker, and writer. My desire to share the greatest gift of my life, Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and His Divine Mercy, has found expression in my writing. My articles have been published locally in the Tri-City Herald's Spiritual Life and editorial columns; in the Carmelite Digest; Celebrate Life magazine; and recently in the National Catholic Register.
Links to these articles and more can be found on my blog at http://www.catholicethics.blogspot.com/. My Catholic Ethics page is on Facebook at:https://www.facebook.com/CatholicEthics.
