Merriam-Webster defines cultivate as:
1) to prepare or prepare and use for the raising of crops; also : to loosen or break up the soil about (growing plants)
2) a : to foster the growth of; b: to improve by labor, care, or study : refine
I especially like 2a: to foster the growth of. It implies that there is something that needs growing, something that is worth growing, and it requires some help in order to grow. In light of that definition, here are some questions I want to wrestle with over the coming months and years:
- What does it mean to foster the growth of our desires? How does that look and who’s the beneficiary? What’s the motivation?
- How do we nurture the culture and temperature of our home; and why would we want to?
- Does our use of technology or gadgets negatively impact our interaction with people? How do we cultivate our use of technology?
- What is quietness and how do we cultivate it to impact how we listen to people with our eyes, ears and heart?
- Why is it uncomfortable to be alone while reading or praying, and how do we cultivate that time so that we learn to listen while reading and praying?
photo courtesy of RedWelly
