Mighty Apple Tree
James Cathcart
January 12, 2017
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Mark 29: 33-7
“Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.”
I planted an apple tree as a child. Well more accurately I ate an apple and was left with a core full of seeds and a misplaced dream. I declared to the house at large that it was my intention to grow an apple tree and went out to the garden. With parental assistance, I dug a small hole and placed my seed in the ground. I knew this process would not be instantaneous. It would take time and patience. And I was patient.
For several hours.
As the afternoon wore on I returned to the seed time and time again with my watering can, keeping an eye for any signs of life. But nothing happened. This was an early lesson in crushing disappointment. There is nothing more human than rooting for the underdog or the lost cause as we cling desperately to hope.
When we are born we are utterly helpless and reliant on others, we are wired to cheer for the vulnerable, the marginalised, the no hopers. All of us here now have made it against the odds, we are all survivors. Children invest wholeheartedly in things even if they are disappointing or are ultimately going to let them down. They love furiously and unreasonably. We can learn from that spirit. In the face of adversity, setbacks and letdowns, children keep on hoping.
“Then they came to Capernaum; and when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you arguing about on the way?” But they were silent, for on the way they had argued with one another who was the greatest. He sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, “Whoever wants to be first must be last of all and servant of all.” Then he took a little child and put it among them; and taking it in his arms, he said to them, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.” Mark 29. 33-7
Dear God,
Help us keep the hope of childhood,
sometimes we are called to hope unreasonably
with sadness and weariness
bear with us
Amen.
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