He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32
“How different our life would be if we could but believe that every little act of faithfulness, every gesture of love, every word of forgiveness, every little bit of joy and peace will multiply and multiply…Imagine your kindness to your friends and your generosity to the poor are little mustard seeds that will become strong trees in which many birds can build their nests…Imagine that you’re trusting that every little movement of love you make will ripple out into ever new and wider circles…You and I would dance for joy were we to know that we, little people, are chosen, blessed, and broken to become the bread that will multiply itself in the giving.”
Henri Nouwen (1932-1996) in Life of the Beloved (New York: Crossroad, 1992) 123-124.
After my meditation about mustard seeds a few days ago, my friend, Bobby Thomas of the Arkansas Baptist Foundation, alerted me to the Mustard Seed App. Check it out. It helps stewards round up purchases to the nearest dollar and then deploys the funds to the charities of your choice. Not only do you multiply the impact of small gifts, but you make math easier in your budgeting.
We are having a young family over tonight for supper. Micah and Kari Kohls and their three daughters, Kinley, Claire, Lainey (or three little mustard seeds). I think I first met Micah at a National Christian Foundation Colorado luncheon a while back. Micah reads these daily posts and we are looking forward to meeting his family. He often sends me little emails filled with kindness.
When we grasp how multiplication happens in giving, we realize that we are the little mustard seeds. In today’s Scripture we discover that we only grow in to large trees when we are planted. We have to go into the ground and die first, which requires the belief and imagination Nouwen so eloquently captures. What are you waiting for? People can’t perch in your branches until you let the Master Gardener sow you like a little mustard seed.