Erin Campbell Naman
Mark 4:30-34 (NRSV)
He also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.

Reflection:
My grandmother owned a mustard seed necklace: I have no idea why. It wasn’t a necklace she wore; it was a necklace kept in a jewelry box with countless pieces of costume jewelry and family “treasures.” I loved going through all my grandmother’s “treasures” whenever we would visit. I had forgotten about this necklace until rereading this passage. I do remember that mustard seeds make for better parables than they do necklaces.

The parable of the mustard seed is one of those rare parables where the story is clear cut: God used something tiny to grow the kingdom. It shows God’s magnificence in a way the hearers would have understood. Only a powerful and mighty God could grow a whole kingdom from something so small.  And if God can do that with a tiny mustard seed, what might God do with us?

But like most parables, the story can be looked at another way as well. The mustard seed can also be a representation of our faith. I have had my mustard seed moments. I have had that moment when my faith was as small as a mustard seed.  So just maybe this parable is also about what God can do with our tiny, shriveled up faith. 

It will be 20 years this month since I lost my grandmother. Not coincidentally it will be 20 years this month since I had a mustard seed moment during a time when I was angry, confused and my faith had dwindled to the size of a mustard seed. Though my faith was small and ugly, God didn’t leave me there.  God stayed with me the whole time, ever patient, ever-loving, tending to that tiny seed of faith. I look back on the past 20 years and how that seed has grown and blossomed. It hasn’t always been smooth, there have been some weeds along the way, but that faith has only grown.

My grandmother was a woman of amazing faith. I have never known someone to walk so closely with God. She went about her days in relationship with Jesus. If she had a mustard seed moment, and I now suspect we all have our mustard seed moments, that seed blossomed into something beautiful and life-affirming for this granddaughter. Maybe my grandmother held on to that mustard seed necklace not for its value as a piece of jewelry but as a reminder of something. A reminder of what God can do with our faith, even if our faith is as small as a mustard seed.

I have no idea what happened to that mustard seed necklace. But I wish I had it now. Not to wear (I am much too vain) but as a reminder of that dark and ugly time and as a reminder of God’s enduring love and patience.  We worship a God who truly does work miracles every day. From a mustard seed, God can grow the kingdom. And from a mustard seed, God can grow your faith.  

Prayer:
Lord, you are an awesome and mighty God. From something so tiny, you have grown your glorious kingdom. You also tend to us, your sons and daughters, as the Great Gardener, caring for each and every one of us.  I confess Lord there have been times when I have made the tending unnecessarily difficult, forgive me, Lord, for those times of disobedience, those times of anger, and those times of fighting against your plan.  As I ask for forgiveness, I also thank you for staying with me during those times, for not leaving me to the weeds.  I am blessed to be a part of your glorious kingdom and may I daily remember those blessings.  Amen.