I love walking in wild places, whether in woodland, beside a stream, along a country lane or windswept by the coast. I’m one of those people who find peace and solace outside, immersed in nature. Reflecting on creation today I am reminded of Gen 1: 31 “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good...”. Perhaps sometimes on our journeys we catch a glimpse of heaven and how things were meant to be.
One of the highlights of the year for me is to visit Hebden Bridge where I like to tackle the steep incline and walk to the little village of Heptonstall (while I still have the stamina) and also to meander along the restful towpath beside the Rochdale Canal. This year I enjoyed these pursuits before Storm Babet hit the UK and devastated so many places. All too painfully aware of the climate emergency we find ourselves battling, I have always appreciated how St Paul spoke of the creation as a living organism: “For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the glorious freedom of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time” (Romans 8: 20-22).
Mindfulness is good for mind, body and spirit, for us to be in present in the moment and appreciate the good while we can, just where we are and being aware of God’s presence. We can bring to mind Jesus’ words that The Message version makes plain:
“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes” (Matt 6: 34, The Message).
As part of our Harvest Thanksgiving this year, as with many other churches, our small Home Church read Psalm 65 which includes this verse:
You crown the year with your bounty,
And your carts overflow with abundance.
The grasslands of the desert overflow;
The hills are clothed with gladness.
The meadows are covered with flocks
And the valleys are mantled with corn;
They shout for joy and sing.
Take a moment today to be mindful of the great abundance and beauty of God’s good creation all around us. And with a grateful heart experience moments of wonder through the sounds, scents, sights, touch and tastes of this glorious autumn season.
Prayer:
God our Father, Creator of all things, we give thanks from grateful hearts for the great abundance, diversity and provision we find in your creation as we taste and see your love and faithfulness. Forgive us for all that we have done that has contributed to the climate emergency, for our complacency and lack of concern, for wilful destruction and for wasting the earth’s precious resources. We pray for the health of the planet, for its restoration and healing of the land. Teach us, guide us and show each one of us what we can do and how we can be part of the solution. God of the harvest, giver of life, providing the corn with ripeness, producing a hundred seeds from one, give abundance to my life, give my heart a great harvest. Amen.
Ruth Leeming
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