And the mission, I trust, was on the whole well made by those who attended it. They made good confessions; they felt true sorrow for their sins. And they made real purposes of amendment against their vices, whatever they might be. The drunkard promised to abstain from drink for God's sake, though it might be almost the only thing that gave him pleasure; the impure promised to abandon and stamp out his evil passions and habits; the one who had neglected Mass and the other duties of his religion out of laziness, gluttony, or indifference, promised to be faithful to them for the future. But how many of the thousands who made these promises have kept them? How many of those who were not leading a Christian life before the mission are now doing so? Some certainly; yes, some of the seed of the word of God, of which our Lord speaks in to-day's Gospel, which was then sown, has indeed sprung up and borne fruit, it may be a hundredfold. Some, in a good heart, hearing the word, have kept it, and brought forth fruit in patience. But, alas! how many, on the other hand, have been like the wayside, the rock, or the thorns in our Lord's parable! The seed sprang up, and remained for a few days or weeks; but now, if you look for it, it has gone, trampled under foot, choked, or withered away. Now, what is the reason of all this sad want of perseverance? Was it that those who made their confessions then were not sincere; that they made promises which they did not really expect to keep? Perhaps that may have been so with some of them; for some people do seem to think that one cannot be expected to avoid mortal sin, unless he is a priest or a religious, and even call others hypocrites who believe that they can and do avoid it. But there were others who failed--and these were a great many--because they thought they had only to say that they would do the thing, and that then the thing would be done. {136} They did not know how weak they were; perhaps they do not know it yet. They will find it out sometime, as those do who have often taken the pledge in vain; and then it may be that they will despair, which will be the worst of all. But if they use this knowledge right it will be their salvation. And how will knowing that they are weak save them? Will it make them strong? Yes, but not in their own strength; it will save them by making them turn to the infinite power of God. This is what our Lord told St. Paul, as we learn in the Epistle of to-day, when he asked to have his temptation removed. He said to him: "My grace is sufficient for thee, for power is made perfect in infirmity." The more we know our weakness the stronger we shall be, if our terror and distrust of ourselves will only make us turn to God in frequent, earnest, and fervent prayer for help, and in continual approach to the sacraments which he has given for our aid.