Twenty-fifth Ordinary

Luke 16: 10

Jesus went on to make these comments: “If you’re honest in small things, you’ll be honest in big things; If you’re a crook in small things, you’ll be a crook in big things. If you’re not honest in small jobs, who will put you in charge of the store?”

As teachers, we often look to the big things to measure our success – the results, the productions, the milestones that make it into the newsletter. Yet Jesus reminds us that it’s the small, unseen, everyday choices that truly reveal who we are. In a Catholic school, the Kingdom is often built not in grand gestures, but in the quiet faithfulness of the classroom. It’s in patient explanation given for the fifth time, the quiet word of encouragement to the struggling student, the decision to listen carefully when it would be easier to rush on.

Our culture tempts us to serve recognition, prestige, or success, but the Gospel calls us to serve God first. In our schools, that means remembering that every child matters, especially the ones who don’t win awards or make headlines. Our vocation is not simply to teach content, but to form hearts that know they are loved by God.

This week, let’s pay attention to the little things. A smile, a prayer whispered before class, a fair decision in the playground, an encouraging word when it isn’t expected – these are not small in the eyes of Christ. They are seeds of the Kingdom. Faithfulness in the ordinary is the foundation of extraordinary witness.

May we be educators who serve God first, who give ourselves fully to the moments that seem small, and who trust that in these acts of faithfulness, we are shaping lives in ways we may never see.