Gleanings – Living with Stench but Advancing
Matthew 13:31-35
“The Kingdom of God is like a grain of mustard seed . . .”
It is dreary this morning in Atlanta. Apart from the weather, it is a bit dreary everywhere. Unemployment is up. Genocide seems to be everywhere but no place like Syria. Europe is imploding. Could the U.S. be far behind? Things stink!
On stinky Fridays it is good to be reminded that we don’t hope in the world. It is fleeting. Rather we hope in the reign of God experienced in the people who follow Jesus. We live in a kingdom that is not world denying and yet transcends it values.
And it will be ushered in. Contrary to modern expectations it begins small and its growth is not linear. And yet it is growing. It will not falter. “Like a mustard seed,” he says. Like yeast doing its magic in flour.
When I was kid I worked at Price’s donuts in Montgomery. I remember making dough for donuts. Breaking up the yeast was the least desirable part of the job. The big blocks of yeast reeked. The smell was so pungent and so awful it, on occasion, would make me gag. The final product, however, was as pleasant in terms of aroma as it was delectable in terms of taste.
The Kingdom in its making or coming sometimes smells bad as it does its work in making us rise. Today I hold my nose with much hope and expectation.