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| L I N D S A Y o S |
L E T T E R |
Autumn
As we enter this autumn season again we remember Keats words about autumn - that it is a season of "mellow fruitfulness" as we experience again the gentle warmth of the sun ripening the fruit as the year wanes. For Christians this fruitfulness is a reminder of God's provision for us - in his bountiful creation - God provides the raw materials - sun, rain, warmth, soil, and of course seeds, while we are to add our labour. Even if we did not work nature would still continue to fruit and seed, but the marvel is this, that when we add our labour to God's bounty things get even more productive and fruitful. This is what God intended, that we should work with him in partnership. The sadness is that so often we work without a thought that we are partners with the Almighty in his creation, not ours. We behave as if the world is ours to possess and own, whereas in the beginning God told human beings to inhabit the earth, to be its husbandmen, its stewards. The stewardship of our world has gone badly wrong, and because of our selfishness and lack of care the earth is becoming increasingly endangered by pollution of all kinds; so much so that in the not too distant future human life itself may even be threatened by global warming. God's creation is fundamentally good and has an amazing capacity to heal itself - God has inbuilt a recreative ability - but if we continue as we are we will spoil everything. I believe we need to turn again to the God who provides in thankfulness, marked by our harvest festivals, but also in repentance, seeking God's blessing for a new beginning for as the psalmist wrote so many years ago in psalm 65 "Thou visitest the earth and blesseth it, Thou crownest the year with Thy goodness." Why not join us in our harvest services on October 3rd at 10:30 and 6:30 or on any Sunday, you will be most welcome. Lindsay
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