Creator of the fruitful earth, you made us your stewards of all things. Give us grateful hearts for all your goodness, and steadfast wills to use your bounty well, that the whole human family, today and in generations to come, may with us give thanks for the riches of your creation.
We ask this in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen
Stepping through the porch, and into St. James’ church for the Harvest Festival service feels both nostalgic and welcoming. Eyes feast on abundant fresh flowers adorning every possible nook and cranny; window ledges are lined with seasonal berries and foliage, displaying nature’s finest colour wheel of reds and greens; wicker baskets, brimming with highly-polished apples of rosy hues suggest a fruitful harvest and sacks of potatoes, earthy in colour with remnants of soil clinging to the skins remind us of the gritty process which has preceded being harvested to grace our tables. The display is inviting: ‘Come ye thankful people come…’ It does indeed narrate the traditional story of Harvest and the season of fruitfulness, one which is a big moment for celebrating the glories of nature.
The morning service, led by Rev. Naomi, encouraged the congregation to look upwards and outwards with gratitude for all the ‘good gifts around us’.
The readings and hymns harmonised and amplified the key themes of thanksgiving, interdependence between nature, the weather and the workers who provide food for us all and stewardship – our duty to protect the environment and use earth’s resources fairly. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, spoke of reaping and sowing with generosity, Luke’s account of the healing of ten lepers provided a reminder of how we should live as people of faith, and make choices about how we see the world, looking for God at work in it. Well-loved harvest hymns were sung enthusiastically. Time and again, the words ‘thankfulness’ and ‘generosity’ were repeated. Collectively, our response was, ‘Thank you God!’
‘All good gifts around us, are sent from Heaven above, then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord, for all His love.’
At the end of the service, the children’s Sunday Club shared their learning. Harvest wreaths, crafted with love, captured the fullness and profusion of the occasion, and provided a visual reminder of the cyclical nature of harvest and that ‘for everything, there is a season’ (Ecclesiastes).
Following the service, a shared lunch was enjoyed by nearly forty of the congregation. Platefuls of food, plenty of laughter and chat and an abundance of goodwill, demonstrated a palpable sense of community, bounty and shared exuberance.
A few hours later, the story of harvest continued in the form of a choral evensong, led by LLM Nicola.
The church, now candlelit, and still dressed in the resplendent fruits of the earth, provided an ambient backdrop for this set piece.
The service included both organ and piano accompaniment by Director of Music, Paul Buckmaster and featured St. James’ choir, with additional choristers from Preesall and Pilling. Melodic songs, psalms, chants, anthems and harvest hymns interspersed the traditional prayers, readings and responses.
Once more, the service was rich in the language of abundance and plenty, in addition to praise for the Creator.
The following day, more volunteers were back in church, dismantling the many floral arrangements and creating bouquets out of them to distribute to people within the parish who, for one reason or another, are in need of a bit of extra tender loving care.
All in all, Harvest had been well and truly celebrated …and the goodness of God.
‘Whoever sows sparingly, will also reap sparingly and whoever sows generously, will reap generously.’
2 Corinthians 9:6