"Not every seed we plant will grow; but nothing can grow except from seed. We should always begin then by planting what we want to grow, even if it might not come to full fruition.

"Man casts seed to the ground, when he places a good intention in his heart." So says Gregory the Great. Then he says it again: "When therefore we conceive good desires, we put seed into the ground."

Each formulation highlights how we can sow what will grow in our life. 'Place a good intention.' 'Conceive a good desire.'

At the beginning of the season of Lent—perhaps especially for those of us who have done this a few times—we can be unsure or even skeptical of our own good desires or intentions. We have experienced before how they can fail to bear fruit, and the very memory of such still-born hopes or resolutions can stand as monument to our weakness and thus discourage us from trying again."

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Question to ponder - how do I persevere in sowing this Lent?

Photo by Jonathan Kemper on Unsplash