October 2021
Dear Friends
Why would people bring apples, beans, tinned meat, potatoes,
or packets of noodles into church, of all places? Not to feed the vicar. And certainly not to feed God who needs
nothing from us – he is the one who has generously given us food, life and
everything else. People in our village
have done this for years and years, piling up produce on windowsills and along pews
and steps as a tangible thank-you to God for his kindness. We have food to eat because God keeps his
promise to maintain the seasons and because the risen Lord Jesus continues to
sustain everything, every moment of every day, by his powerful command. (Genesis
8:22, Hebrews 1:3) And so every year we
have Harvest Thanksgiving.
Fruit and veg also remind us, Jesus says, that who we are,
deep down, will determine what grows in our life. Oranges don’t grow on apple trees. If our hearts are far from our loving Creator
and we are pursuing our own agenda then that will show. “Each tree is recognised by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from
thorn-bushes, or grapes from briers.” (Luke 6:44)
Jesus and his apostles also tell us that he has the power to
so deeply transform us that, miraculously, we do begin to produce a
different kind of fruit: “Now the works of the flesh are
evident … But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness,
self-control.” (Galatians 5:19-22) What
a glorious fruit-laden tree that is!!
And,
finally, Jesus says that God has given us harvest time so that we never forget
his judgment. Just as every good farmer
must separate wheat from weeds or good apples from bad apples, so Jesus must one
day separate us from others according to our response to him. Jesus says, “at harvest time I will tell the
reapers, ‘Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but
gather the wheat into my barn.'"
(Matthew 13:30)
Our Harvest
Thanksgiving this year is on Sunday 3rd October, and you are very
welcome to join us. Produce to decorate
the church can be brought to the church on Saturday 2nd October
between 10am and 11am. After Harvest we
will send non-perishables to the King’s Food Bank in Kendal and we will find a
good home for the fresh food.
Sincerely
Graham Burrows
