The realm of God is this

Mark 4:21–32 

 

1. The ground 

 

when a gardener plants her seeds

within the ground, then sleeps

and rises, night and day,

 

as the seed bursts in the dark,

green shoot reaching for the light,

roots stretching further beneath,

she does not know how. 

 

it is the earth that nurtures,

draws in water from the rain,

warms with the light of the sun,

coaxing roots and stalk and leaves,

bud and petals and flower – 

 

then the gardener picks her roses,

harvests blooms for joy and delight – 

 

and does she know it is the earth,

the ground, the soil, that is like

the realm of God? 

 

2. A seed 

 

Consider a tiny seed,

planted among the grains

of dirt and indistinguishable.

When it breaks open,

when it grows to its potential,

it is a bush, vast,

sheltering, welcoming,

birds and mammals and 

insects and more – 

 

That seed. Not the tree. 

That seed is like

the realm of God. 

 

3. Light 

 

when I turn on the light

I do not hide the light

in the cupboard, or beneath

the bed – oh, no! 

for what light will I gain

if I hide myself away

from the realm of God?