The readings this week show that what is small, hard to see, and even invisible can have vast importance. Whether it’s the tender shoot of the cedar tree or the tiny seed of the mustard plant, what seems slight now will become something mighty. “

There may be two main ways to get religion wrong. One is to presume it has nothing to do with the material world. So forget political and social realities, pray harder, and concentrate on the spiritual life because it’s the only forum that counts.

Then Jesus said, “God’s kingdom is like seed thrown on a field by a man who then goes to bed and forgets about it. The seed sprouts and grows—he has no idea how it happens. The earth does it all without his help: first a green stem of grass, then a bud, then the ripened grain. When the grain is fully formed, he reaps—harvest time!

I distinctly recall the day when my faith took firm root. I was 7 years old and my sisters and I had just been summoned by my dad to join him around the kitchen table while my mom fixed him dinner.

We pray to our kind and gracious God who offers us mercy.

Food for our soul not only feeds us now but also opens up new possibilities that we might not have even considered.