HARVEST FESTIVAL
‘God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance.’
We plough the fields and scatter
The good seed on the land,
But it is fed and watered
By God's almighty hand.
He sends the snow in winter,
The warmth to swell the grain,
The breezes and the sunshine,
And soft refreshing rain.
All good gifts around us
Are sent from heav'n above;
Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord
For all his love.
He only is the Maker
Of all things near and far;
He paints the wayside flower,
He lights the evening star;
The winds and waves obey him,
By him the birds are fed;
Much more to us, his children,
He gives our daily bread.
We thank you, then, O Father,
For all things bright and good:
The seed-time and the harvest,
Our life, our health, our food;
Accept the gifts we offer
For all thy love imparts,
And what Thou most desirest, our humble, thankful hearts
The collect for Harvest Thanksgiving
Eternal God, you crown the year with your goodness and you give us the fruits of the earth in their season: grant that we may use them to your glory, for the relief of those in need and for our own well-being; through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord, who is alive and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
Deuteronomy 26 v. 1-5 : 9-11
When you have come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance to possess, and you possess it, and settle in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from the land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose as a dwelling for his name. You shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, ‘Today I declare to the Lord your God that I have come into the land, a land flowing with milk and honey. So now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground that you, O Lord, have given me.’ Then you shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house.
Psalm 65
You are to be praised, O God, in Zion :
to you shall vows be paid, you that answer prayer.
Those who dwell at the ends of the earth
are afraid at your wonders :
the dawn and the evening sing your praises.
You tend the earth and water it :
you make it rich and fertile.
The river of God is full of water :
and so providing for the earth, you provide grain for all.
You drench its furrows, you level the ridges between :
you soften it with showers and bless its early growth.
You crown the year with your goodness :
and the tracks where you have passed drip with fatness.
The pastures of the wilderness run over :
and the hills are girded with joy.
The meadows are clothed with sheep :
and the valleys stand so thick with corn,
they shout for joy and sing.
2 Corinthians 9 v. 6-11
The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. As it is written,
‘He scatters abroad, he gives to the poor; his righteousness endures for ever.’
He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us;
St. Luke 12 v. 16-21
Then he told them a parable: ‘The land of a rich man produced abundantly. And he thought to himself, “What should I do, for I have no place to store my crops?” Then he said, “I will do this: I will pull down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.” But God said to him, “You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?” So it is with those who store up treasures for themselves but are not rich towards God.’
Heavenly Father,
We thank you for the beauty of the world in which we live,
For the changing seasons and the variety that they bring
For the fertile soil on which we grow our crops
For the water that makes them grow
For the food that we enjoy in such abundance.
We pray for all who work on the land, contending with the uncertainties of the weather and the market place.
We pray for hill farmers, often working in lonely places and on difficult terrain.
We pray for those working with animals and poultry.
Creator God, be with those who care for your world and provide our food that they may see your guiding hand in all that they do.
Father, we are aware that there are those who go hungry in our own country. We pray for a spirit of generosity in our communities that none may be excluded or in want. We pray for the local food bank and all who use it.
Compassionate Father, we ask you to heal the sick, thinking especially of .......................................... May they know your never failing presence and find in it a source of renewed strength. We ask you, Father, to comfort and encourage those who care for them.
We pray for the repose of the soul of those who have recently departed this life. Lord, at this time of distress and questioning, we ask that the bereaved may be comforted and consoled.
Lord of the Harvest,
Help us to be generous and wise stewards
of the good things we enjoy.
Prayer from Archbishop Hosam Naoum of Jerusalem
O God of all justice and peace we cry out to you in the midst of pain and trauma of violence and fear which prevails in the Holy Land.
Be with those who need you in these days of suffering; we pray for people of all faiths – Jews, Muslims and Christians and for all the people of the land.
While we pray to you, O Lord, for an end to violence and the establishment of peace, we also call for you to bring justice and equity to the peoples.
Guide us into your kingdom where all people are treated with dignity and honour as your children, for to all of us you are our Heavenly Father. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
A PRAYER FOR UKRAINE
Lord, you promise us a future in which the weapons of war will be transformed into instruments of peace.
Today is not such a day, as missiles rain down on Ukraine and innocent people take refuge underground..
You taught us to pray your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven,
and so we pray that you will restrain the aggressor, grant courage and wisdom to the resistance, and bring peace to this part of your world.
Look with mercy on the peoples of Ukraine and Russia, and grant our leaders wisdom and courage to seek a resolution that will allow truth and freedom to return to these lands.
Grant Lord, that through this conflict that we would have unimaginable four years ago, we may recognise anew our need for you, and live to thank you for answering our prayers.
Amen