¹ Now there were some present at that time who told Jesus about the Galileans whose blood Pilate had mixed with their sacrifices. ² Jesus answered, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this way? ³ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish. ⁴ Or those eighteen who died when the tower in Siloam fell on them—do you think they were more guilty than all the others living in Jerusalem? ⁵ I tell you, no! But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”

⁶ Then he told this parable: “A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard, and he went to look for fruit on it but did not find any. ⁷ So he said to the man who took care of the vineyard, ‘For three years now I’ve been coming to look for fruit on this fig tree and haven’t found any. Cut it down! Why should it use up the soil?’

⁸ “‘Sir,’ the man replied, ‘leave it alone for one more year, and I’ll dig around it and fertilize it. ⁹ If it bears fruit next year, fine! If not, then cut it down.’”

Gardening takes time, attention, and lots of effort. You know anything in life that is worth having takes time, attention, and lots of effort, but gardening can really be labor-some. Those who have the proverbial ‘green thumb’ are people I enjoy talking to about their love of plants. Now some like flowers, some like vegetable gardens and some simply work hard to produce the perfect lawn. In Missouri, Joshua and I grew a garden. It was a fun project he wanted to pursue as a kid, so we tilled the ground, prepped the soil, planted our crops, and made sure they had plenty of water. Our squash, tomatoes, and jalapeños did well, and Joshua enjoyed picking his crops.

We also planted blackberry vines and blueberry bushes. The blackberries also did well, but not the blueberries. We couldn’t understand why they wouldn’t fruit. The bushes appeared healthy, and we made sure they had the right amount of water. Try as we might they just didn’t want to do exactly what we wanted them to do. Then we read something that changed everything. These particular bushes needed a more acidic soil, and mixing coffee grounds in the soil was recommended. What if we had run out of patience and simply decided these beautiful bushes were no longer worth the effort?

Lent offers us a season to take a measured look at our spiritual lives, to give the proper time, attention, and the requisite effort to the nurture of the practices and rhythms that lead to the deeper life of faith. In our gospel passage, Jesus talks about the additional care needed from the gardener to help a fig tree achieve its most fruitful existence. I think we too need extra care at times in our life of faith. What special care might God be leading you to take in this season? Where do you need to give more time, pay more careful attention, and invest more effort in your spiritual practices?