Harvest Thanksgiving

 

Imagine living in a country where you venture to the local supermarket, only to find the shelves empty of products you wanted to buy. No carrots, or fresh meat, no bread or milk, no hand sanitiser or soap, and above all, no toilet paper. Well, you don’t need too vivid an imagination to envisage what that might be like. Just the ability to remember how things were in the UK back in March and April of this year.

The shortages weren’t the result of disastrous crop failures, or the collapse of supply chains. It was panic buying. Some people shoved more fresh produce into their shopping trolleys than they could possibly eat, with the result that mounds of fruit and vegetables were binned. What a waste. You will probably remember the video posted online by a tearful nurse asking people to ‘just stop’ their panicked purchasing. After a busy hospital shift she was unable to get hold of the basic goods she needed for her family.

 Things are better now, thankfully, but what happened back in the spring gave us a glimpse into what life is like in some countries when famine or disaster strikes. It was a reminder not to take a plentiful supply of everyday produce for granted. Harvest Time give us an opportunity to pause and give thanks to God, the ‘giver of every good and perfect gift’.

He not only gives us food and drink, but satisfies the deepest needs of our souls. Jesus warns us of the danger of seeking satisfaction merely on a material level, “Do not labour for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.” Our hearts will only be satisfied in knowing God through Jesus. That is why he came into the world to die for our sins and be raised to life. As he said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

Harvest Services Sunday 4 October

Providence Baptist Church 10.30am 

Ebenezer Baptist Church 4.30pm 

Livestreamed Evening Service, 6.00pm 

See our Providence & Ebenezer website for info on attending our Harvest Services.