03.09.2026 | Monday in Lent

​Starting Again
 
“Let us press on to know the Lord; His appearing is as sure as the dawn.”
Hosea 6:3
 
The sun is shining and the daffodils are in full bloom, the first bright signs of Spring showing their beauty after days of rain and clouds. It is easy to be lured into Spring Fever and want to begin the gardening season in earnest. And then I remember that this is Saint Louis, the Midwest capital of wild and unpredictable Spring swings. Cool your jets, old man. Spring has not truly arrived. She has only offered a glimpse of future glory.
 
After the cold, grey, frigid stretch of Winter, it is no wonder we ache for color again. I miss the beauty. I miss the smells. I miss the joy of harvest that comes with the turning of the season. The spring lettuce seeds are ready. We have already started reseeding the lawn in preparation for Summer. There is work to be done, but patience is the key right now. Oh, how I yearn for true Spring and fresh veggies.
 
Gardening teaches me patience more than anything else. There is so much hurry up and wait. There is the hope of planting, the faith of watering and weeding, the love poured into tender care. And yet, disappointment can still come, like last year’s hailstorm that wiped out the entire harvest of snap peas in one afternoon. The weather is unpredictable. Temperatures and rainfall are unpredictable. So, we plant in faith, continue in hope, and wait in loving patience. And when the unpredictable happens, as it always does, we start again.
 
That is the lesson of all gardens everywhere. We start again. We replant. We prepare. We work and we keep trying. In the end, the flowers will bloom. The vegetables will be harvested. The faith, hope, and love will bear fruit, even if there are bumps and bruises along the way. Kind of like life, right? We get knocked down, but we rise again. We keep moving forward in faith. Forward in hope. Forward in love. And in the end, we will harvest once more.
 
Go in quiet courage, held in the promise that nothing planted in love is ever wasted.

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