I am writing this on the day after our harvest celebrations. What a great day it was topped off by a superb Harvest lunch made by Margaret and Gareth.

Harvest festival is always a special time of year for me. It has a long and rich history in the Bible. The Israelites entered the promised land with instructions to hold three harvest festivals two of which lasted a week! These festivals were not just focused on harvest, they were to remember what God had done for them. The harvest offerings were a reminder of what God was still doing for them, he had acted in the past to set them free, he was acting in the present to sustain them.

The first festival was the festival of unleavened bread. This took place at the end of the barley harvest. The festival began with passover.

Next comes the festival of harvest which comes 50 days after unleavened bread. It falls at the end of the wheat harvest. Each person brings 2 loaves as a wave offering. We know this festival as Pentecost when we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit.

The third festival is the feast of tabernacles which comes at the end of the grape harvest. We could be in tabernacle season as I write. This is when they remember that God dwells with them. We know God dwells with us as his Spirit lives in us. At Christmas we remember God coming to dwell in this world in human form.

Easter, Pentecost, Christmas and all of creation point to God's faithfulness, saving power and loving care of us and the whole world. I know after learning all this, I won’t see harvest in the same light. 

Speaking of celebrations. On 27th of October, we will be dedicating Margaret’s and Gareth's granddaughter. This is now going to be a family service. 

Next year our Church is 325 years old. It would be great if folk could think of ways we might celebrate this significant milestone to God's love and faithfulness.

God is not just with us in the joys of life, he is with us amid the pain and grief of life as well. The Sunday of Remembrance is a great reminder that there is a time to lament as well as a time to rejoice, and we should be okay with that.

Whatever season of life you are in, the Church is here for you. More importantly God is here for you. The Psalms invite us to realise that we don't need to pretend with God. There is a prayer in them for every season in life. A mature fellowship realises that if we don't need to pretend to God, we don't need to pretend to each other either. May God shape us into such a people.

May God bless you and keep you, whatever season you are in.