(Each Saturday, a faith leader in Franklin County offers a personal perspective in this space. To become part of this series, email religion@recorder.com)
Several years ago, our dog, Westie, brought home some unwanted critters. I tried everything to battle those fleas, but they just kept multiplying. I vacuumed constantly, did load after load of laundry and still more fleas! Finally, the day came when we thought we had the problem solved so we let Westie out of his confinement in the kitchen, the only room in our apartment where we didn’t have carpeting. That night, we were on the couch watching a movie with Westie back in his spot between us. As I rubbed Westie’s belly, I looked down and saw three fleas crawling around on our poor little dog. So back into the uncarpeted kitchen went Westie, and back to the laundry room I went. It was infuriating that these tiny little creatures were causing such a huge problem!
In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus compares the kingdom of God to a mustard seed. A mustard seed is tiny and yet from this seed grows a bush which has the ability to become the largest of all plants in the garden. The mustard plant spreads quickly and under ideal conditions can reach a height of 30 feet.
Jesus used the mustard seed to talk about the Kingdom of God because both have an almost unbelievable growth potential, from which amazing things grow. However, notice that I noted that the mustard plant can reach such unbelievable dimensions under ideal conditions. Of course, in order to achieve ideal conditions, a gardener generally must get involved. Ideal growing conditions don’t usually just happen on their own.
For the Kingdom of God to reach its fullest spread or greatest height or offer shelter to the full number of God’s creatures, we must do our part to help bring about ideal growing conditions.
The frustrating thing about the fight against fleas was that just when I thought we were making some headway, we would find a whole new batch of the insects. This same frustration can often set in when we look at the world around us. Just when it seems as if one problem is solved, several more and often bigger problems crop up.
We live in a world which can easily overwhelm us. With all that is going on in the world, it can be difficult to remember the power we have, and it is easy to feel very small against very big problems. We too often start thinking, “I am just one person; I could never help all these people. No matter how hard I work, there is always more to be done.” This mind set is even more tempting when the work we are doing doesn’t seem to be making any difference.
It can leave us wondering if our work will ever make a difference. We may even be tempted to stop trying, thinking that we are just one person, that we only have so many resources to give. But no matter how discouraged we get, we must continue with the good work that we do, because we never know when that one act of kindness, that small financial donation, that one hour of service will make all the difference in the world.
I liken it to pouring water into a bucket. Even if we were to fill a bucket with an eye dropper, once that drop of water is in the bucket, it is impossible to know which drop it is that causes the bucket to finally overflow. So it is with our service to God: We may never see the results of our work, but it may just be that the one good work we do is the very thing that causes the bucket to overflow.
Rev. Megan invites you to the Central Congregational Church of Orange, located at 93 South Main St. We are a member of the United Church of Christ (UCC). Our Sunday morning worship, which begins at 10:15 a.m., is mostly traditional with Scripture, prayer, organ and choir, and is very much “come as you are.” Our Cellar Closet thrift shop is open Saturdays, 9 a.m. to noon, September through May. We host fundraisers and fellowship events throughout the year. Throughout the summer, we have a wide variety of special music during our worship services including Friendly Town Sound, Surround Sound, soloists, instrumental music and more. For more information, call 978-544-6895, email Revmegan@aol.com and be sure to like us on Facebook.