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“The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all your seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and perch in its branches.”
— Matthew 13:31-32
Jesus often spoke to His followers through stories and illustrations, known as parables. This allowed Him to create logical examples His followers could relate to when He was trying to explain a highly abstract concept. The parable of the mustard seed is a perfect example of this.
While Jesus was teaching from His spot in a boat on the lake, He reminded those gathered that the kingdom of Heaven was like a mustard seed. Although that seed may be one of the smallest seeds, when it is planted, cultivated, and taken care of, it has the potential to grow beyond expectations. In fact, according to Jesus, that seed has the ability to grow beyond a plant and into a shrub.
The parable of the mustard seed is often used to explain transforming the seemingly impossible into the possible. But, it moves beyond that. This particular parable is also about potential. It tells the story of how God can take something small and turn it into something you would never expect.
Each of us has a tiny element of something special inside, something unique that God has placed in us when He created us. When we take the time to nurture and cultivate that element, surrounding it in faith, allowing it to grow in love, we have the ability to turn it into something miraculous. We each have the potential to do great things and it is all because of the way we were formed.
