Are you noticing a slight chill in the air, perhaps a crunchy leaf underfoot, or washed out greens slowly turning into brilliant reds and oranges? Autumn is arriving, and with it the seasonal celebration of harvest.
When I was at school, even though I lived in a relatively urban area and didn’t go to church or attend a church school, we still held harvest festival services at our school. I picked up a sense of being connected to and grateful to God for food, even if I didn’t know Him personally at that time.
Every time we eat, we are essentially eating God’s creation on a plate. Food is a central connection point with God! The fact that you are living and breathing and able to read this piece is a reminder that God has answered your prayerful request that He would give you this day your daily bread.
Tragically though, we have become too disconnected from the realities and the stories behind our meals. The farmers who care for the land, growing the abundance of crops and tending to the herds and flocks of animals. In Westmorland - where I live - 1,600 wonderful farmers are scattered across the Lakes and Dales; many of their families have cultivated food for centuries. In fact, there have been farms on the Cumbrian fellsides, with pasture grazed by livestock for at least 6,000 years!
For most of human history, the majority of people have been closely involved with food production and processing. No longer. We live in a unique moment when we can go to the supermarkets and buy packaged food without knowing anything about the people and places involved in our food production.
The harsh reality is that many farmers are struggling to make any money from their work. Their input costs are rising but supermarkets and processors suppress the price that farmers get paid. I see it every week and it is heartbreaking.
We know that God created this world in love. Psalm 24 declares that the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it! Every field and every farm. So how do we echo His love for the world in the way we produce and eat our food?
Gathering and sharing food is woven into the story of the children of Israel. In Exodus 16 we find Israelites in the desert between Elim and Sinai grumbling against Moses and Aaron, complaining about their food. But God never breaks his promises, and he blesses them with exactly what they need: “I will rain down bread (manna) from heaven.”
You see, in the decentralised food economy of the desert, there is enough for all. Food is gathered according to needs, rather than wants. It isn’t hoarded by the powerful few - that should give us a clue as to what our attitudes should be to material things in general but to food in particular. This is where the Israelites are reminded that all life is a gift from God.
We don’t have manna from heaven today; instead God provides our food through the toil and ingenuity of farmers and growers.
So, this harvest time, let’s take the time to understand where our food comes from, tell the stories of those places and processes, thanking God for that food and never taking it for granted. And let’s remember, too, the farmers who grew the wheat and tended to the animals; giving thanks for those through whom the Lord feeds and sustains us.
