Latest / Still, Here / Small Seeds, Hidden Futures – The Formed Future

Transcript

Small Seeds, Hidden Futures – The Formed Future · Still, Here

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: This is still here.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: A quiet moment to remember what is true.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: Listen to these words from the book of Matthew chapter 13 verses 31 and 32.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: He set another parable before them saying,
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed,
• 0:24
  SPEAKER_00: which a man took and sowed in his field, which indeed is smaller than all seeds.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: But when it is grown,
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_00: it is greater than the herbs and becomes a tree,
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: so that the birds of the air come and lodge in its branches.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: We like to know whether what we are doing is working.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: We measure response.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: We watch numbers.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: We look for results.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_00: We want some evidence that the energy we are giving to a thing is producing
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_00: a future worth the effort.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: That desire is understandable.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_00: But much of God's work begins below the threshold of measurement.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus points to a mustard seed,
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: small enough to overlook,
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: easy to dismiss,
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_00: yet carrying a future that cannot be seen by looking at the seed alone.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: The kingdom often works that way.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: A faithful beginning can look unimpressive while it is becoming consequential.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: That is difficult for people living in a culture of immediate feedback.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: We are trained to watch for a reaction.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: Did anyone respond?
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_00: Did the numbers go up?
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: Did the post travel?
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: Did the project succeed?
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_00: Did the conversation change anything?
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: And when the answer is unclear, we can assume the action did not matter.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus asks us to imagine hidden growth.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_00: A seed is not inactive because we cannot yet see the tree.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: The future is already present in another form.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: This matters for vocation because faithful action is often smaller
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: than our imagination of calling.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_00: We may picture a dramatic assignment while God places one conversation in front of us.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: We may want a complete strategy while the Spirit gives one next step.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: We may want to know the impact before we begin while faith asks us
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_00: to sow what we have been given.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: The next faithful step may be almost embarrassingly ordinary.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: Write the first page.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_00: Make the introduction.
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: Learn the skill.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: Apologize.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_00: Encourage the person.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_00: Begin the class.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_00: Record the episode.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: Ask for help.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: Set aside the hour.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: Try the idea once.
• 3:17
  SPEAKER_00: Small does not mean meaningless, and hidden does not mean absent.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: One of the disciplines of a formed future Is learning to participate
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_00: without demanding immediate proof that participation worked.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_00: We act faithfully because faithfulness belongs to us.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: Growth belongs to God.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: That does not mean we never evaluate or change direction.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Wisdom pays attention.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: We learn from results.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: We adjust when needed.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: But we refuse to make visible impact the only evidence that the Spirit is at work.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: Some of the most important things you have done may still be growing in people you cannot see.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: Some choices may bear fruit years from now.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_00: Some seeds may become shade for people you will never meet.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: You do not have to see the tree before you sow the seed.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_00: Ask what small act of faithfulness belongs to you today.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Then do that.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_00: The hidden future can remain in God's hands.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: Take a moment for this prayer of presence.
• 4:40
  SPEAKER_00: Lord Jesus, free me from needing immediate proof that every faithful act is working.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_00: Give me the courage to plant small seeds and trust hidden growth.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: Show me the next step that belongs to me today.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_00: Help me act with care, learn with humility, and leave outcomes I cannot control in your hands.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_00: Teach me to recognize that small beginnings can carry futures I cannot yet see.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: As you return to what is ahead, carry this prayer with you.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_00: I sow the faithful seed and trust you with growth.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_00: I sow the faithful seed and trust you with growth.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: I sow the faithful seed and trust you with growth.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: I sow the faithful seed
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, stay steady, stay open, stay present.
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: You are still here.