“’When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the
very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest…
Leave them for the poor and the foreigners living among you.”
Leviticus 19:9, 10b NIV
The September “beacon” focuses on our donations to the Ipswich
Family Bank, the local food and baby bank charity providing food, clothing,
toiletries, and other essentials to local needy Whitehouse families and across
Ipswich. I know that these have been greatly appreciated and always gratefully
received. My grateful thanks to Bill and Beryl for heading this up, dropping off
donations and keeping us updated about the things that they
most need; and to all of you who buy extra food and put a little
something in the green box in the church [see photo left.]
September is also when we celebrate our harvest festival (on
Sunday 25th) when we give thanks for Gods’ bountiful goodness
through the crops grown and safely gathered in by hard working
farmers. This year’s food gifts we bring will be going to the
Family Bank and our monetary gifts will be going to the BMS
Good Land Harvest appeal, supporting the village of Ghusei in Nepal. We will
also God willing be having a ploughman’s lunch after the service, and you are
most welcome to join with us. Coincidently did you know that food banks
providing food for the poor and foreigners living in the community dates way
back to Biblical times? In Leviticus 19:9-10 it gave laws to Israelite landowners
and farmers when harvesting and gathering in their food crops. For example,
when a barley or wheat crop was being harvested, they were told not to reap to
the very edges of the field or pick up the “gleanings” – those storks which had
fallen on the ground and been left behind. These uncut edges and gleanings
were left for the poor and foreign nationals in need. To glean means to gather
bit by bit. By giving to the Ipswich Family bank at harvest time and at other
times means that we help local families who are short of food today. We are
gleaning from our Kitchen cupboards, and we are gleaning from the supermarket
shelves. Let’s continue to do this bit by bit when we can because it is another
lovely way in which we can be beacons for Jesus and make Him known in this
neighbourhood.

Prayers, blessings, and love

Robert