Time for Reflection
The first item of business this afternoon is time for reflection. Our time for reflection leader today is Mrs Helen McLeod, elder of St Margaret's Church of Scotland in Forfar.
Mrs Helen McLeod (St Margaret's Church of Scotland, Forfar):
Good afternoon. There is a story that Jesus tells about a mustard seed. It is one of the shortest stories in the Bible, but for me it is one of the most significant. This is how it goes:
"The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed—mustard is smaller than any other seed, but when it has grown it is taller than other plants; it becomes a tree, big enough for the birds to come and roost in its branches."
In eastern countries, mustard is a plant that grows into quite a large tree, but the seed that produces it is absolutely tiny—the point being that great things can start from small beginnings, although that takes time and patience, and the one who plants the seed may not see the full height of the tree.
I have had the privilege in recent years of being closely involved in church politics, which has brought a blend of experiences with which I am sure you would identify. There is the exhilaration of having the opportunity to make a difference; the realisation that any idea or proposal, however good, needs an awful lot of practical outworking; the patience required for that outworking and the frustration at the length of time that it sometimes takes; the need for perseverance in the face of obstacles of all kinds; satisfaction, disappointment or uncertainty, depending on outcomes; and, of course, the wondering at the end of a project or term of office, or even as life progresses, whether we have in fact made a difference and whether anything useful has been achieved. Not only do we want to plant the seed, but we hanker after the harvest.
At such times, I have found much strength and encouragement in this prayer of Oscar Romero, whose words I offer you now:
It helps now and then to step back and take the long view.
The Kingdom is not only beyond our efforts,
it is even beyond our vision.
We accomplish in our lifetime only a tiny fraction
of the magnificent enterprise that is God's work.
Nothing we do is complete,
which is another way of saying that
the Kingdom always lies beyond us.
This is what we are about.
We plant the seeds that one day will grow.
We water seeds already planted,
knowing that they hold future promise.
We lay foundations that will need further development.
We provide yeast that produces effects far beyond our capabilities.
We cannot do everything,
and there is a sense of liberation in realising that.
This enables us to do something
and to do it very well.
It may be incomplete,
but it is a beginning,
a step along the way,
an opportunity for the Lord's grace to enter and do the rest.
We may never see the end results,
but that is the difference
between the master builder and the worker.
We are workers, not master builders,
ministers, not messiahs.
We are prophets of a future that is not our own.
Amen.
May God bless you in your work this afternoon and in the days ahead.