The kingdom of heaven is…. in the souls of our feet
The kingdom of heaven is like a page in “Where’s Waldo Now?” … nailed to the dirt and girth of this earth, wrought of run-of-the-mill nit and grit, in the midst of everyday humdrum hustle, hiding in plain sight.
When was your last “Where’s Waldo” quest? “Where’s Waldo at the Beach? The Santa Spectacular? The Incredible Paper Chase? In Hollywood? The Search for the Lost Things? The Fantastic Journey?” If you have not met Waldo, he is an gangly, bespectacled, adventurous teen whom you might bump into on the road, in deep seascapes, in a crowded room or squeezed between skyscrapers. The way we, as readers, relate with Waldo is by searching for the shifty lad in the elbow-to-elbow mob scenes that stretch from edge to edge of every outsize page.
Here is the thing. Waldo is not hiding. He is an ordinary boy in a red and white striped tee shirt who plants himself here, there, anywhere. The questions are; Do we, the readers of the “Where’s Waldo” books have the desire to find him? The persistence to keep looking? And the willingness to proclaim our surprise when catching a glimpse of him in plain sight?
I believe the Waldo books are today’s version of Jesus’ parables about the kingdom of heaven. Waldo is like a seed sown in a field. He is like a pinch of yeast kneaded in a loaf, a mysterious hidden treasure, a good fish in a net full of seaweed. Waldo is always right smack in the midst of ordinary things waiting for us to find, recognize and be delighted by his presence. And then, of course, we are invited to continue to follow the feet of our desire to experience Waldo’s next mysterious appearance. The kingdom of heaven is like a page in “Where’s Waldo Now?”
Still, some folks believe the kingdom of heaven is on another planet, home to the glowing throne of God, a happily ever after life paradise for those who have proven themselves worthy by reciting right words and headlining right action. But Jesus insists, “No. The kingdom of heaven is like a page in “Where’s Waldo Now?”
Supposing some of us are scratching our heads and screwing up our eyes, Jesus clarifies. The kingdom of heaven is like a solo seed, a pinch of baker’s yeast, an obscure buried treasure, a precious pearl, a netful of fish, an adventurous teenager. (See Matthew text below, excepting the teenager.)
The key to experiencing the kingdom of heaven is in the souls (not a misspelling) of our feet. That is pretty much what the voice from the burning bush told Moses some thirty-five hundred years ago. “Do not come near; put off your shoes from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.”(Exodus 3.5) The kingdom of heaven is nailed to the dirt and girth of this earth, wrought of run-of-the-mill nit and grit, in the midst of every day humdrum hustle, hiding in plain sight. The kingdom of heaven is where we are standing right now.
And so we are not surprised when we hear Moses petitioning God, “I pray thee, show me thy glory.” (Exodus 33:18) Having seen the inscrutable fire with divine dust between his toes, Moses hungers to experience more of God’s holiness, and, he expects to find it in the ordinary nit and grit, clouds and smoke of earth.
The point is this. The kingdom of heaven is not like a magnificent, surround sound, kaleidoscopic, action flick sporting angels and hand-picked people dabbling in an epic bacchanal. The kingdom of heaven is like dust and spit and the breath of life made in the form of homespun humankind. The kingdom of heaven is the One good seed hidden in the common nether of every thing and every body.
The questions before us are these. Do we have the desire to find the kingdom of heaven? Will we persist in looking for it? Are we willing to be surprised when catching a glimpse of the kingdom in plain sight? Will we continue looking until we recognize and proclaim the seed of heaven hidden in every thing and every body?
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Learn more about me at https://www.debraasis.org/ All words are generated by grace and the grit of a real human being. Debra Asis
Matthew 13:31–33,44–52 Jesus put before the crowds another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”
He told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”
“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
“Have you understood all this?” They answered, “Yes.” And he said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.”
