[Jesus] told them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Though it is the smallest of all seeds, yet when it grows, it is the largest of garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds come and perch in its branches” (Matthew 13:31-32).

Jesus explains that the kingdom of heaven is everything that God wants for us: the ultimate end and fulfilment of all he came to lead us into when we trust him and follow his ways. At St Mary’s, by encouraging everyone within our school community to push down roots into the things that God has taught us in the Bible, we want them to be nurtured, even from the smallest of beginnings, towards becoming everything that God has in store for them. As we do this, and our children bear the fruit of his Holy Spirit in their lives (i.e. love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control c.f. Galatians 5:22-23) we seek to bless to the wider community who take refuge in our branches.