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Welcome to We Wonder: Lent. This is the first week of Lent: just as Israel wandered in the desert for forty years, and Jesus fasted in the wilderness for forty days, we will spend the next five weeks walking with Jesus toward the cross.

Scripture passage: Mark 4:26-32

I wonder why Jesus said the kingdom of God is like a seed? Can I sit and wonder about that word-picture?

I wonder how the work God does in me is like the work God does in a seed that is planted deep in the ground?

I wonder if there are places in me that feel hard or closed-up, like an unplanted seed? What do I want to say to God about those parts of myself?

I wonder if I can trust God to bring new life out of the dry, hard places in my heart? I wonder if I can trust that God loves all of me, and that God’s love is a safe place to be planted?

Lent happens in springtime: the earth that was frozen and dead blossoms into life again. Dry, helpless seeds are planted in the ground, and plants push up out of the ground. Jesus goes into the grave, and is raised to new life. It is a time of sadness for all that is wrong in us and in the world, and also of hope that it can all be made new. Can I ask God to come close to me in the sadness? Can I ask God’s Spirit to whisper words of hope to me in the dark?

Loving God: Jesus was planted in the ground, and raised to new life. Help me to be like a tree that is planted near living water, and that bears the fruit of your love and life.

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.