Little Nofel

As a little guy I grew up in the inner city of Cleveland, Ohio. I mean it

literally. I was always the smallest kid on the block. In fact, my nickname was

“Little Nofel.” I always wanted to believe it was because I was the youngest of three brothers.

Since then I have never really thought much about my lack of height. Not

even when both of my two sons passed me up when they were about 11 years old.

However, I embraced being a little guy when I finished up as interim pastor

at Good Shepherd Presbyterian Church in Lincoln, Nebraska. They gave me a

small statue that says: With God’s Help, Little Folks Can Do Big Things Too.

The statue depicts a scene from the VeggieTales animated video, Dave and

Giant Pickle when Junior Asparagus playing David facing down a giant pickle in

boxing shorts playing Goliath.

The lesson of the Mustard Seed is for all us who don’t see ourselves as super

heroic members of the Justice League or the Avengers. Who think of ourselves as

just me. Just us.

Rev. Dr. Teri McDowell Ott writes, “Jesus says the Kingdom of Heaven is

like a mustard seed – tiny, unimpressive, practically invisible in your hand. But

when planted, it grows into something far larger than anyone expected.

“You have to keep in mind, the Mustard bush is not, will never be, and can

never be a towering cedar or a majestic sequoia, but the mustard bush is scrappy,

persistent, a wildly spreading plant that refuses to stay contained.

“Sometimes we forget and neglect our value. Many small member

congregations look at larger churches with professional choirs, multiple staff and

brand-new buildings and wonder. ‘What do we have to offer?’

“Small member congregations can find it easy to believe they have nothing

worth claiming. But that’s simply not true. A church’s value is not defined by its

size, staff or sanctuary count. The church is not a building or budget line.”

Our Theme and Conference Title are:

So, We’re Small. Get Over It!

Celebrating God’s Abundance

Small Member Churches are the living Body of Christ. Rev. McDowell Ott

continues, “Still, we church folks often think too small. We are too shy about what

we have to offer. Too humble to speak joyfully about the hope we carry. We don’t

want to be those ‘pushy’ Christians so we whisper the Good News into a world

that’s screaming bad news.

“Mustard seed work starts small and grows quietly yet is spreads farther than

we can imagine.”

Real ministry isn’t epic. It’s the steady accumulation of small, almost

imperceptible acts: a phone call returned, a prayer whispered, a meal delivered, a

presence offered, pulling weeds, and simple acts of kindness like holding a door

for someone and going out of your way to thank a waitperson.

Mustard seed faith does not require heroics. You don’t have to be Captain

Marvel or Superman.

Living out Mustard Seed faith only requires persistence, hope and the

willingness to offer what we have:

An Abundance of God

With God’s Help, Little Folks Can Do Big Things Too.

God in Jesus Christ, with the help of the Holy Spirit will grow us and God’s

mission though our church family into something mighty. Through just us.

Source: Rev. Dr. Teri McDowell Ott, The Presbyterian Outlook, 2026 Lenten

Devotional, page 31.