Quaker philosopher Rufus Jones once told a true story about a man who owned a summer cottage on the coast of Maine who was determined to start a Sunday School class for children who lived on a nearby offshore island. He sailed to the island in his boat, gathered the children together, and began to instruct them in matters of faith. Hardly knowing where to begin, he decided to start with something familiar to all the youngsters. The Atlantic Ocean surrounded their island. They saw it every day. He would begin with the Atlantic. He asked, "How many of you have ever seen the Atlantic Ocean?"

There wasn't a single response. All the children stared at him blankly. Thinking they had not understood him, he repeated the question: "How many of you have seen the Atlantic Ocean?" No one spoke a word or raised a hand.

The visitor discovered, to his astonishment, that although the children had spent all their lives with the sound of Atlantic surf beating in their ears and with the vast stretches of the Atlantic spread before their eyes, they did not know its name.

We hear about the Kingdom of God and we think only of some distant reality yet to manifest itself. There is that Kingdom to be sure. But there is another Kingdom, Jesus taught us, that is already here. If I may use the word guardedly, there is a "supernatural" Kingdom that already surrounds us. It is like treasure buried in a field, it is the pearl of great price. "Lo, it is in the midst of you." said Jesus. We are not alone in this world. Imagine the difference that makes.