The piece of tech wasn’t even big enough to have any controls on it. It was voice activated. Tom had been careful to set the commands, but he was paranoid that someone else on the bus might set it off. Finally, his stop arrived and he got off. He couldn’t wait to show it off to his band mates.
When he walked through the doors of the church hall where they were rehearsing, he saw his mates Callum and Skye trying to connect massive speakers up to their instruments.
“You’re not listening,” said Skye. “You put this jack here and that one there.” She chucked a lead at Callum in frustration.
“You can leave all that rubbish,” said Tom. “I’ve got this.” He produced his treasure and laid it on a table.
“What’s that?” asked Skye.
“This… this is all the amplification we’re ever going to need.”
Skye looked at him like he was an idiot. Callum started to laugh. “That?” he sniggered.
Instead of answering, Tom simply said: “Speaker, detect and connect to all instruments within range.”
He then picked up the nearest guitar and started to play. The room was suddenly full of sound. The windows shook in their fittings; the wooden floor vibrated; a flock of birds three streets away took off in surprise.
“Wha…” stammered Skye. “How can all that sound come from something so tiny?”
Discussion questions
Ask the young people these questions. Try to let the discussion flow as much as possible, without interjecting too many of your own ideas.
- What do you think the speaker represents?
- Are you in this story?
- Are we like the speaker? What small thing can we do to make a big difference?
- Can you think of other examples of a small number of people making a big difference?
- What faith-based interpretation could you put on this story?
This parable is a retelling of Matthew 13:31-32. It can also be used with the story from Matthew 13:33. Read them both and ask the young people to compare all three stories.
