Thoughts for Harvest Festival by Bonnie Hebenton

As we come to this Harvest Festival Sunday, the opening line from Philippians 4 is perhaps what should be foremost in our minds: "Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say rejoice."

Harvest is a time of looking back over what has been, pausing to give thanks and resting before the work of the new season so that we can reap a harvest again in due course. In Aotearoa New Zealand we are fortunate to have the richness of Matariki (Maori New Year) celebrations interwoven into the traditional Harvest Festival season. During Matariki, across New Zealand, people come together to remember their ancestors, share food, sing, tell stories and play music.  The storehouses are full and there is time to reflect and celebrate. 

Today we will be exploring some of the parables within the Matariki stories and how they encourage us to care for creation, and to honour and celebrate all that God the Creator has given us. As you wait for the celebration to begin this morning, take a few moments to think back over your year: remember special people; give thanks for the ways you have been able to contribute to your community; think of the ways you have cherished or disregarded the environment in your neighbourhood. As you reflect, hold these words from Deuteronomy 26:

God brought us into this place and gave us this 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.” You shall set it down before the Lord your God and bow down before the Lord your God. Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house. Amen

This sermon can be listened to here