October
Dear all
It's harvest time, and all over the countryside churches and schools are being decorated with flowers and food to celebrate the successful completion of another year's hard work by our farmers. Once again, we will have enough to eat through the winter. As the old hymn has it, "All is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin."
In our modern, interconnected world, where shortages in one place are met by importing from another, we may have lost some of that joy our ancestors experienced. True, those directly involved in farming can (hopefully) breathe out again as they get the reward for their labour, but it takes something like the carbon dioxide shortage we had this summer to remind most of us what it looks like when supermarket shelves are comparatively empty.
And that shortage was, I hope, a helpful reminder to all of us that the abundance of food we enjoy in this country is not a right, but a privilege; a blessing, perhaps. Because when we take things for granted, we lose that most precious of attitudes gratitude.
The Christian season of harvest is one of thanksgiving to God, who makes the sun shine, the rain fall, and the plants grow. It is a time to thank him that he has once again kept his promise given to Noah that "as long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest ... will never cease." It is a reminder that life is best lived in an attitude of wonder, hope and trust.
I hope that over this season we can all take time to be grateful for another harvest. That gratitude may be directed towards God, or it may simply be directed towards those wonderful people in our communities who work so hard to get food onto our plates. Whoever we wish to thank, it is vital that we are grateful. Gratitude is a recognition that we need each other, that we are not able to live isolated from each other, nor is it healthy to do so. It reminds us that while much of life may feel like a fight over a limited pool of resources, our most fundamental needs can only be met as we work together.
So let us be truly thankful this harvest, and may that attitude serve us well over the
long autumn and winter months ahead.
With every blessing, Matt
It's harvest time, and all over the countryside churches and schools are being decorated with flowers and food to celebrate the successful completion of another year's hard work by our farmers. Once again, we will have enough to eat through the winter. As the old hymn has it, "All is safely gathered in, ere the winter storms begin."
In our modern, interconnected world, where shortages in one place are met by importing from another, we may have lost some of that joy our ancestors experienced. True, those directly involved in farming can (hopefully) breathe out again as they get the reward for their labour, but it takes something like the carbon dioxide shortage we had this summer to remind most of us what it looks like when supermarket shelves are comparatively empty.
And that shortage was, I hope, a helpful reminder to all of us that the abundance of food we enjoy in this country is not a right, but a privilege; a blessing, perhaps. Because when we take things for granted, we lose that most precious of attitudes gratitude.
The Christian season of harvest is one of thanksgiving to God, who makes the sun shine, the rain fall, and the plants grow. It is a time to thank him that he has once again kept his promise given to Noah that "as long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest ... will never cease." It is a reminder that life is best lived in an attitude of wonder, hope and trust.
I hope that over this season we can all take time to be grateful for another harvest. That gratitude may be directed towards God, or it may simply be directed towards those wonderful people in our communities who work so hard to get food onto our plates. Whoever we wish to thank, it is vital that we are grateful. Gratitude is a recognition that we need each other, that we are not able to live isolated from each other, nor is it healthy to do so. It reminds us that while much of life may feel like a fight over a limited pool of resources, our most fundamental needs can only be met as we work together.
So let us be truly thankful this harvest, and may that attitude serve us well over the
long autumn and winter months ahead.
With every blessing, Matt
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