Season of mists

This month as the evenings begin to draw in, autumn begins.

I have heard many say that autumn is their favourite season with trees turning from green to red, orange and gold.  Damsons and blackberries adorn our hedgerows and early morning mists transform invisible cobwebs into glittering, bejewelled creations.

Of course, with autumn comes the time of gathering and harvest.  On top of nature’s bounty come kilos of cultured vegetables and fruit begging to be eaten or preserved.  Many hours can be spent chopping, boiling, or bottling to capture the goodness of hot summer days.  All around are fields of crops; fodder beet, field beans, silage maize, lingering spring barley or winter wheat, which will be gathered together with the last cuts of silage.

Much like us, Jesus lived in an area which was both agricultural and beside a huge body of water – Lake Galilee.  He would have witnessed the work required to harvest what was needed to provide for the people who lived there and frequently used illustrations from daily life.

In Matthew 9: 35-38, we hear how Jesus told his disciples that

 ‘The harvest was plentiful, but the labourers are few: therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.’

Jesus saw the crowds of people as a harvest to be gathered and transformed.  He knew that though he could meet their physical needs while he was with them, they required something much deeper which would provide them with a hope and purpose which would help them navigate life and give them hope for what lay ahead.  In this passage he was asking those who were called by him to carry his mission out to all the world.  

Each of us has our own harvests.  It may be the harvest of work well done.  Perhaps the harvest of a family grown up and fending for themselves.  The work could be for others, either through volunteer work or compassion for those less fortunate than us.  There are many types of harvest and at the end of our lives, all of us will assessed by others who will decide whether ours was a good harvest, or not.

However we approach this fresh season, let us reflect on all that has been good this summer; giving thanks for the rich provision we have received and thinking of how it could be shared with those in need; those close to home or in far off places.