This summer, Incarnation families are gathering weekly at Alcova Heights Park, or at home, or in another lovely natural spot for a relaxed time of family prayer and nature exploration—read this post for a quick primer. Here’s this Sunday’s wonder-worthy scripture:
Matthew 13:31-33
He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
Our atrium kids may remember examining mustard seeds with a magnifying glass. . . they resemble teensy tiny dots on paper. Recall together any seeds of various sizes you’ve planted. With the proper soil, sun, and water, seeds grow. But they don’t simply grow larger; they change, transforming into a vegetable or whatever type of plant. A small seed contains everything its needs to grow into a tree! Where does that strength come from?
Jesus often talked about the Kingdom of God. His friends and followers knew it was very important, but also mysterious. What did they think when Jesus said God’s Kingdom is like a mustard seed?
Wonder all week:
You might look at baby pictures and talk about how the kids have grown. As with seeds, parents can take care of children by providing nurturing food, water, and a safe environment. But parents are not the ones with the strength or power that makes kids grow! (Do you think it’s the same strength that’s in seeds? Where does it come from?)
Read A Seed is Sleepy
It’s not too late to plant seeds in your victory garden: check out what works for us here in Zone 7.
Read another Kingdom of God story, Jesus’ Parable of the Growing Seed. There’s a new character in this one, the farmer. Who is the farmer? Who is God in this story? Who are we? (Reminder for parents: be open to all interpretations! Last year when we read this in atrium one of our kids talked about the farmer being people who don’t know about God yet . . . and it was just what I needed to hear.)
Mark 4:26-29
And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”