It is hard to believe autumn is nearly upon us! There is a definite feeling of freshness in the air!

We have already begun the Harvest services, first at Derry Hill, then followed in early October by Bremhill and then Foxham.

We have a lot to be thankful for this year. The weather over the summer may not have been great, or even the food harvest great but there is a revival of a spirit in the nation that is more important than the weather and the crops this year. We are fortunate that, regardless of the weather, we are able to cope. We are not dependent upon our own allotments and gardens like the people in the African countries, the middle east and so on.

Maybe though, the fact that the fertilisers, the digging and the grade A seeds could not rise above the weather conditions are a sobering reminder that there are things – basic things – that man cannot control. The weather, upon which all crops depend, is one of them.

And, we are gently nudged to remember the world’s poor who face drought every year or a ‘wash-out’ of their crops.

Statistics also remind us that there is enough food produced in the world to feed everyone on the planet. In other words God has provided all that he promises to do. One thing stands in his way of His will and that is people. People who put a price on food that cannot be met, people who refuse help for a nation, people who worry about making a profit more than feeding the starving.

Harvest is a time to remind ourselves that change happens only when the people want it to and are passionate about it. It is worth remembering that letters from the word Harvest can be rearranged to make the word ‘SHARE’. That is what it means to be thankful for what we have. Being thankful means giving our surplus to those that do not have enough. Being thankful means sharing.

I hope and pray that as our harvest celebrations continue we will remember that our food is only produced with the help of God. Nothing that we have can be produced without God’s grace.

I hope, and pray, that the Spirit of grace that came upon this country during the summer will be perpetuated amongst all peoples for many years ahead. That spirit of love and care for each other, that spirit of empathy with people who were strangers. I hope and pray that it will be a stable part of our diet from this time onwards.

With love to all

Ann