It's amazing how events in our daily lives so often correspond with the readings from daily Mass. In today's Gospel reading from Mark 4:26-34, Jesus gives us the parable of the mustard seed. Jesus said to the crowds,"To what shall we compare the Kingdom of God, or what parable can we use for it? It is like a mustard seed that, when it is sown in the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on the earth. But once it is sown, it springs up and becomes the largest of plants and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade."
This passage is very relevant to a conversation I had with my friend Jeff this morning after our men's prayer group meeting. Many of our interactions and discussions in this group center around the struggles of fully surrendering our lives to the will of God. This concept came from a small book called Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence: The Secret of Peace and Happiness by Rev. Fr. Saint-Jure & St. Claude de la Colombiere. The message of the book is really summed up in the title. Living the message is the most difficult part.
Jeff and I talked about how amazed we were that this one book has had such a tremendous impact on so many lives, including the guys in our group, our families and friends, even complete strangers. Jeff had purchased this book a few years ago after finishing another book on the same subject. This book seemed to fit the bill at the time. Jeff recognized the message of true joy and happiness through trustful surrender, and it was quite a relevation. According to the authors (and in agreement with the Church), God loves and cares for us and only wants the best for us. He wants us with him in heaven. Just like a loving parent only wants the best for their child. God gives us blessings and also allows evil to occur in our lives in order to lead us to him. We may not understand why bad things happen to us, but there is peace in knowing that God allows this for a reason and has a plan for our good. The message is such a contrast, quite shocking actually, compared to the message of the modern culture, where God is portrayed as a genie in a bottle. We want Him to grant us our every wish, and then we get angry at Him when he doesn't.
How does this relate to today's Gospel reading? Here is the rest of the story. Jeff was so moved by the book, that he wanted to get copies in the hands of friends and family. This was the seed. The fertile ground where the seed was planted was in our prayer group. We all received and read copies of the book, and this set in motion a movement that could only come from God. Another friend in our group, Rick, was so moved by the book that he proceeded to purchase several hundred copies for all of us to give out to friends, family, and especially the people that God put in our paths each day. Dozens, if not hundreds of lives have been changed for the better by this little book, including my life. I know of at least one person who came to Christ through this book (with the help of a doctor and a travelling preacher) before he died. There will surely be more. This is now the growing mustard plant whose branches are put forth, "so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade."
This blog is now one of the branches that has sprouted from this mustard plant called "Trustful Surrender". We welcome your comments and would like you to share your stories of trustful surrender with us.
In the words of Brother Simeon, "The authentic Christian is the person whose heart is perpetually open like the good earth to receive all these seeds of the Word into itself and to water them with tears of love and compunction and desire, in order to allow them to come to full harvest in the Lord's sight."
This passage is very relevant to a conversation I had with my friend Jeff this morning after our men's prayer group meeting. Many of our interactions and discussions in this group center around the struggles of fully surrendering our lives to the will of God. This concept came from a small book called Trustful Surrender to Divine Providence: The Secret of Peace and Happiness by Rev. Fr. Saint-Jure & St. Claude de la Colombiere. The message of the book is really summed up in the title. Living the message is the most difficult part.
Jeff and I talked about how amazed we were that this one book has had such a tremendous impact on so many lives, including the guys in our group, our families and friends, even complete strangers. Jeff had purchased this book a few years ago after finishing another book on the same subject. This book seemed to fit the bill at the time. Jeff recognized the message of true joy and happiness through trustful surrender, and it was quite a relevation. According to the authors (and in agreement with the Church), God loves and cares for us and only wants the best for us. He wants us with him in heaven. Just like a loving parent only wants the best for their child. God gives us blessings and also allows evil to occur in our lives in order to lead us to him. We may not understand why bad things happen to us, but there is peace in knowing that God allows this for a reason and has a plan for our good. The message is such a contrast, quite shocking actually, compared to the message of the modern culture, where God is portrayed as a genie in a bottle. We want Him to grant us our every wish, and then we get angry at Him when he doesn't.
How does this relate to today's Gospel reading? Here is the rest of the story. Jeff was so moved by the book, that he wanted to get copies in the hands of friends and family. This was the seed. The fertile ground where the seed was planted was in our prayer group. We all received and read copies of the book, and this set in motion a movement that could only come from God. Another friend in our group, Rick, was so moved by the book that he proceeded to purchase several hundred copies for all of us to give out to friends, family, and especially the people that God put in our paths each day. Dozens, if not hundreds of lives have been changed for the better by this little book, including my life. I know of at least one person who came to Christ through this book (with the help of a doctor and a travelling preacher) before he died. There will surely be more. This is now the growing mustard plant whose branches are put forth, "so that the birds of the sky can dwell in its shade."
This blog is now one of the branches that has sprouted from this mustard plant called "Trustful Surrender". We welcome your comments and would like you to share your stories of trustful surrender with us.
In the words of Brother Simeon, "The authentic Christian is the person whose heart is perpetually open like the good earth to receive all these seeds of the Word into itself and to water them with tears of love and compunction and desire, in order to allow them to come to full harvest in the Lord's sight."
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