Today’s scriptural images are compelling, in their simplicity, to reflection. Yeast mixed into flour produces a whole batch of dough; a mustard seed yields a bush and a haven for birds; and a good marriage reflects Christ’s love of the church. Such is the making of the kingdom of God! For God works where we are, utilizing whatever appeals to our interior senses. My grandmother was an excellent cook, but a better baker. Her bread and rolls and pies were the stuff of childhood memories. Working on the farm in the summertime, Friday mornings were very special. After breakfast we went out to the fields and my grandmother started her weekend baking. Lard (real), flour, raisins, cinnamon and yeast were deftly blended into a ball that resided (patiently) in a brown crock, covered with a white dishcloth. My siblings and I were amazed as that little ball rose to fill the bowl with dough which we were allowed to punch and pinch before it went into my grandmother’s trained hands to be crafted into Sunday morning sticky buns. The smell of the baking bread filled the house (and my memory bank!). Such is the kingdom of God! Yes! So too, the kingdom of God is like the seed that matures into a bush strong enough to house birds; so too are spousal and familial relationships the likes of God’s kingdom. The mystery of the kingdom of God grows within us to the extent that our faith in God and our dependence on God allows us to expand our understanding of God and allows us to take within us, to interiorize, the graces that God bestows on those he loves. Let God’s graces and love, mercy and forgiveness, be leaven in you yielding dough that God can shape into God’s image. Let God’s grace grow in you like a seed that matures and yields both a haven and a great harvest. Thusly will you smell the baking bread and hear the song of the birds! This is a great mystery! It is the kingdom of God present and working among us and within us! |