Harvest Festival - 1

Summer is ended, and today we start our celebration of harvest.



Heavenly Father,
you visit the earth and bless it,
you crown the year with your goodness:
We bless you for the fruits of the earth
which you have given for our use,
and we pray you
to sow the seed of your word in our hearts,
that it may bear fruit in our lives,
until we are gathered into your heavenly kingdom;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Come, ye thankful people, come,
raise the song of harvest home;
all is safely gathered in,
ere the winter storms begin.
God our Maker doth provide
for our wants to be supplied;
come to God's own temple, come,
raise the song of harvest home.

All the world is God's own field,
fruit as praise to God we yield;
wheat and tares together sown
are to joy or sorrow grown.
First the blade and then the ear,
then the full corn shall appear;
Lord of harvest, grant that we
wholesome grain and pure may be.

For the Lord our God shall come,
and shall take the harvest home;
from the field shall in that day
all offenses purge away,
give his angels charge at last
in the fire the tares to cast;
but the fruitful ears to store
in the garner evermore.

Even so, Lord, quickly come,
to thy final harvest home;
gather thou thy people in,
free from sorrow, free from sin,
there, forever purified,
in thy presence to abide;
come, with all thine angels come,
raise the glorious harvest home.



Happy Sunday!