Two short parables which reflect both the experience of the early Church and also highlight features of God's Kingdom in our world. Considering that they were written when the future of the young Church was still very precarious, they exude an extraordinary level of trust and confidence in God's power, a trust which was not disappointed although the results were not seen for generations. The parable of the mustard seed emphasises the smallness of the Christian communities at the time. It showed extraordinary confidence in the future that the tiny seed would one day become a plant big enough to give shelter. Yet that is exactly what happened. In the second parable of the yeast, the same hope is present. The tiny amount of yeast reaches into and influences the whole batch, as the Church from tiny beginnings has made its message influence the whole world. The message of firm hope in the future is one that we, too, in times of doubt and uncertainty must have faith in.