Day 8 | 40 Days Through Mark

Have you ever been out in the woods on a dark night without even the light of the moon and stars to show you the path? A flashlight pushes back the darkness and illuminates your path in a way that allows you the confidence to proceed. The flashlight is a small and insignificant tool that generally waits in readiness for your use in your glove box or backpack.
 
The message of the Gospel is much like that flashlight. It is a small but powerful tool to push back the darkness of this world. Jesus used the parables of the lamp that is set upon a lamp stand to provide light to reveal hidden hazards in this dark world, the growing of the seed without any help from the sower, and the insignificance of the mustard seed to help us understand that God will use our insignificance to help spread the Gospel to the world.

Mark 4: 30-32 | Again he said, “What shall we say the kingdom of God is like, or what parable shall we use to describe it? It is like a mustard seed, which is the smallest of all seeds on earth. Yet when planted, it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds can perch in its shade.”

God can use even the most unexpected person to spread his Gospel message if we are willing to be used by him. We must let those around us know that Jesus has shed his own blood to redeem us and as we spread the light of our testimony and let the love of God flow through us, we will impact others. The Gospel itself is the seed that grows as it is spread among those who need it. We can spread the seed, but God makes it grow and spread into a great harvest.
 
Dear Lord, Help me to be your instrument to shed your light of love into a dark world. Use my insignificance to glorify you and increase your kingdom. Amen