Trying to grow a plant from a seed is certainly not as easy as we think, and those who have tried to do so or done so will surely attest to that.
When we first get the seed, we have dreams and expectations of what it will be like when it grows into a plant and bear flowers or fruit.
Eagerly we will sow the seed in the soil and then wait expectantly for to see it sprout and grow.
But that is where the fairy tale ends and the reality begins.
It may not germinate, or insects will eat it up as it grows and we will realise the simple truth that growth is not easy at all.
There will be all sorts of challenges and difficulties, but through it all the fight for survival will grow stronger and stronger.
The 1st reading reminds us that our faith also needs to grow and there will be challenges and difficulties.
It also reminds us that we will need endurance to do God's will and gain what God has promised us.
We are reminded not to be drawn back by challenges and difficulties and to be lost by it.
Like the gospel parables about the seeds, let us keep faithful to the grace God has given us and strive to bear fruits of love in our lives.