Maginhawa

Listening to the Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful.
And kindle in them the fire of your love.
Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created.
And you will renew the face of the earth.
Lord,
by the light of the Holy Spirit
you have taught the hearts of your faithful.
In the same Spirit
help us to relish what is right
and always rejoice in your consolation.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Listening to the Word

Mk 4:26-34

Jesus said to the crowds: “This is how it is with the kingdom of God; it is as if a man were to scatter seed on the land and would sleep and rise night and day and through it all the seed would sprout and grow, he knows not how. Of its own accord the land yields fruit, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the grain is ripe, he wields the sickle at once, for the harvest has come.”
He said, “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.” With many such parables he spoke the word to them as they were able to understand it. Without parables he did not speak to them, but to his own disciples he explained everything in private.

Reflection

A small act of kindness sprouts to bigger heights. This is what we experienced in our life, and, as we had our short trip at Maginhawa Street.
Maginhawa Street is not that well known. It is not like other roads such as EDSA, Commonwealth, or Roosevelt avenue. If these four roads are to be compared, Maginhawa street is like nothing among mentioned. But in this small street, out of all, witnessed a great miracle that no one could have imagined. In this traffic route started the first community pantry. And its goal is simple: to give food to those who needed food.
It all started as a small stall with its saying, “Magbigay ayon sa kakayahan, kumuha ayon sa pangangailangan.” Or “Give what you can, take what you need.” And it was gathered around by people afterwards. Ana Patricia Non, the person who started this initiative, planted a seed; a small seed that grew throughout the country and in East Timor. Same thing as what happened in the parable of the kingdom of God.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus said, “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.”
In our life, we can also see the kingdom of God if only we start it. The kingdom of God is not limited to the religious, or ordained, but also to the simple ones. Few examples are what we encountered, especially because we have our own ministries, which are from the Chapel Youth Ministry (YCM) and BEC’s. Our experiences in these ministries, although varies, led us to one realization: only if we start small.
Let us open ourselves to the Holy Spirit. In such a way, we will make a change; it will help us a lot to see the kingdom of God. Do your best, do not fear, and God will do the rest. As long as we remain faithful and striving for the greater glory of God, we will see that what we planted small will soon grow. Yes, it may be difficult at first but trust; trust in the Lord.