Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." ~Matthew 9:37-38
It's that time of the year again! Our church's annual pumpkin patch is up and running just in time for Halloween and all things autumn. As this is the largest fund raiser we hold all year, we are hoping that a lot of folks will purchase pumpkins, gourds and goodies during the coming weeks. The weather has turned sunny, dry and much cooler, and is predicted to stay that way for most of October. I do hope that puts people in the mood to stop by our church and start decorating their homes and businesses.
These are just a few photos of this year's pumpkin patch, featuring even more pumpkins than we had last year.
We were most fortunate to have an entire baseball team, to which one of our high school church members belongs, volunteer to remove all the pumpkins our of their huge boxes and display them for us last Saturday. Many in our congregation are older folks who are no longer able to do such physical labor. God bless those young men with strong arms and backs, and a willingness to serve!
Danny and I count ourselves as part of the baby-boomer crowd. Because of the health strains on us this year, we can only offer to help in the selling booth when we are both available. Danny still doesn't feel confident in driving on his own, and I don't blame him. Last year, I could come and go freely, but that's no longer the case.
Our congregation at Shiloh Community Church isn't large in size, but they're large in love. My prayer is that those who visit to buy pumpkins will feel God's Holy Spirit through us, and decide to visit with us for church services and/or Bible studies that we offer throughout the year. As Jesus tells us in Matthew's gospel, the harvest of hearts and minds is plentiful, but the workers are few. May our presence in our community at this time of year turn both heads and hearts toward our true home in the Lord. As our service bulletin declares each Sunday:
Amen!
It's wonderful that you engage with the community through this seasonal activity. Good for your church! I could really relate to your comment that last year you could come and go as you wished. I'll tell you a secret, I am caregiving for my older husband. He's basically fine but needs the companionship and attention as he ages. It can be difficult for me to get out on my own. But through God's grace, I'm totally okay with that. The weather where you are sounds beautiful actually. Aloha dear.
ReplyDeleteCool pumpkin patch, smiles. Keeping you both in prayer, sweet friend.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Linda, and thanks always for your prayers.
DeleteLove and blessings!
May people find a home there Martha. After all, didn't Dorothy say, "There's no place like home"? :)
ReplyDeleteShe absolutely did, Bill. That's one of my favorite films of all time, by the way. We are praying for all who have yet to find their true home.
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a wonderful tradition and so many pumpkins. Thank you for all the work you and Danny do at your church. It is people like you who set the example for others to come and join in. God bless you and your community.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Victor! Yes, we do hope that folks will stop because of the pumpkins for sale, but then decide to visit a service and get to know this loving group of people who worship in this place. So many sheep are lost in this crazy world.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Oh, I wish I could come visit your church's pumpkin patch! We will be in N. GA. next week, but staying a bit too far north east of where you are. I am hoping for that cool fall weather to hang around next week so we can enjoy the fall season there! I am really looking forward to it! I hope you sell LOTS of pumpkins! Thank you for doing your part! Many hands make light work, so they say, and it's true! Blessings!!!
ReplyDeleteI can tell how excited you are to be visiting the Georgia mountains and enjoying the cooler weather, Pamela! It should be beautiful up there when you're visiting. We hope to sell lots of pumpkins, too, and we usually do. Safe travels for your trek next week.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Each year, I buy pumpkins for the front porch. And each year, I do battle witht he squirrels, who think the pumpkins are put there for an occasional snack, and sometimes a full meal. It's like Charlie Brown, Lucy, and the football, and I am Charlie Brown. Or that definition of insanity, in which you keep doing the same thing in hopes of a different outcome.
ReplyDeleteThat's just too funny, Glynn! We both know how tricky and devious our squirrel friends can be, don't we? Just ask Racer. :)
DeleteLove and blessings!
Great photos, Martha! The Methodist church located on our Lake Morton, has a pumpkin patch each year. I haven't been over that way in a while. I'll have to take a drive and see if theirs is up and running. Thanks for sharing yours with us!! I hope they all get sold!! xo
ReplyDeleteThanks, Terri! Yes, we're hoping for lots of sales, too. Let us know if you do venture over to Lake Morton and take some pictures, too.
DeleteLove and blessings!
That’s a lot of pumpkins, Martha! Have fun.
ReplyDeleteYes, they are, Diana. Maybe, too many, but time will tell.
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a sweet post!!I. I know you are recognized in the community for your good works & spreading of The Gospel. The Hands & Feet of Jesus.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Lulu
Thanks for your kind words here today, Lulu. Yes, that is the mission, isn't it, to be the hands and feet of our Lord in action? I do hope we all can be exactly that.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Hoping that all the pumpkins are sold and enjoyed by the community. That's a great idea for the annual fundraiser. Let this be the year for best one ever for the church.
ReplyDeleteBlessings to you!
Thanks so much, Bill, for your wish for our church. We, too, are hoping and praying it will be a record breaker!
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a beautiful event! I hope it goes well!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Barbara. That is my hope and my prayer.
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a feast for the eyes! I just love this initiative, particularly the young men who made time from their busy lives to help. When much of the news is full of trouble and mischief, y'all are setting a beautiful example.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your kind words here, Myra. We, too, are so appreciative of and thankful for the youth who gave up part of their weekend to help us out there in the patch. These pumpkins are a feast for the eyes, I agree.
DeleteLove and blessings!
I'm so happy to know that my post today blessed you, Ron. With so much going wrong in the world, being able to put up a positive face in the midst of it all goes a long way in reaching the lost and lonely who might just decide to check out this God thing for themselves. As I said in the blog, we may be a small group of Christians, but we have a huge love for our community.
ReplyDeleteLove and blessings!
Dearest Martha Jane,
ReplyDeleteWelcome Home is a good message for going to the Home of God.
Indeed, heavy lifting for pumpkins that size!
Never have felt inclined to decorate for Halloween or for any occasion. WHY?!
As a fundraiser, sure it is a nice try to collect some money.
Hugs,
Mariette
It's an American tradition to do decorations for the fall, and also use pumpkins to make pies, Mariette. I'll be the first to say that I don't care for pumpkin anything, but that's just me. Our church is the only one within at least a ten-mile radius that hosts a pumpkin patch, so it does attract lots of people. We hope we can meet so many and welcome them home to the Lord.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Martha Jane, sure I know that after 41 years of living here! Never liked any pumpkin pie though...
DeleteHope you are successful with the fundraiser!
Hugs,
Mariette
I'm with you on the pumpkin pie. I'll take apple any day!
DeleteAMEN!
DeleteLooks like an amazing time and a fun time to enjoy the fall season! thanking God for a good harvest.
ReplyDeleteYes, it is a busy and fun event, Mike. Let's give thanks to the God of the harvest always.
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a nice feast! And you photos are so nice orange and brown :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words here today, Aritha.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Martha, I always enjoy the photos from this event. They did not disappoint this year. The pumpkins are so vibrant. Like how you said the church is not large in number but is large in love. What a lovely thought. God bless! Karen Friday
ReplyDeleteThanks for your kind words here, Karen, about my photos and the event. It's a lot of work, but well worth it in the end. May we all be people known for our great love for others.
DeleteLove and blessings!
HOLA: LE HAGO UNA PREGUNTA: LA IGLESIA ES CRISTIANA DONDE USTED SE CONGREGA? ¿PORQUE FESTEJAN HALLOWEEN? ESO ES DEL DEMONIO, LA VERDAD NO ENTIENDO, BUENO YA NADA ME SOR0PRENDE, A LO MALO LLAMAN BUENO Y A LOO BUENO LLAMAN MALO.
ReplyDeleteBelieve me, I hear your concern about this. Yes, we are Christians, and pumpkins aren't solely used for Halloween. Pumpkin decorations are found in many homes during Autumn and cooking with pumpkin, as in making pies, is extremely popular at this season of the year. Halloween is actually the shortened version for All Hallows Eve, the night before All Saints Day, which is one of the most sacred days in the Christian calendar year. I hope this clears up some doubts on your part.
DeleteLove and blessings!
MARTHA: NO CREO QUE TENGAN QUE USAR UNA FIESTA DIABOLICA CON EL FIN DE ATRAER GENTE PARA QUE COMPREN CALABAZAS, ¿TU ERES CATOLICA NO? SOLO LOS CATOLICOS FESTEJAN EL DIA DE LOS SANTOS, ESA ES UNA TRADICION MUNDANA, EN LA BIBLIA NO DICE NADA DE ESO. DESEO QUE DIOS TE ACLARE LA MENTE EN CUANTO A SU PALABRA Y TE DE ENTENDIMIENTO Y SALGAS DEL ERROR EN EL QUE TE ENCUENTRAS Y MUCHOS OTROS TAMBIEN.
DeleteThanks for your honest opinion shared here. Blessings!
DeleteAll the best with the sale of your harvest pumpkins. Bright and colorful! Autumn is my season to be sure. Blessings on your forthcoming sale. May God send amble laborers and abundant fruitfulness.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the well-wishes, Debra! Yes, we do need lots of the Lord's servants to minister to the needs of so many in our hurting world.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Thank you for sharing the big layout of Orange pumpkins with us...I love the spread of Orange. It is great that the guys were able to come and help with getting the pumpkins out and organized into sizes. I'm hoping that this brings in a lot of money for your church. Just up the road from us, the Methodist church in our area does something similar to this. I have been amazed as to how many pumpkins have been sold. This is a win win fund raiser. People are thrilled to get their pumpkins and with the church receiving the blessings, they in return bless others. Happy Thursday Martha.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your lovely comment here, Shug! I've heard the same about Methodist churches in all places doing pumpkin sales at this time of year. Our church is no longer affiliated with the UMC, but we are continuing this tradition anyway. So glad you enjoyed the photos!
DeleteLove and blessings!
Boa tarde, Martha
ReplyDeleteQue vocês consigam vender muitas abóboras. Trabalhar na obra do Senhor é bênção de Deus, que a tua igreja continue crescendo em amor, obrigada pelas felicitações, bjs querida.
Doing the Lord's work is what all of us should be about, Lucinalva. Thanks so much for your encouragement here, my friend.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Aw, what a fun, happy place your church pumpkin patch is! And how kind of those young guys to do the heavy lifting for you all! There are still kind, decent people in this world.
ReplyDeleteYes, there are those young people who give me hope for the future out there, Cheryl. As we might say in the South: "Their mamas raised them up right." Yes, the pumpkin patch is fun every year and is a happy place, indeed.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Blessings in this time of harvest...both in God's bounty and His people and you do to be His hands and feet!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much!
DeleteLove and blessings!
What a feast of the eyes - all those colorful pumpkins, how fun to look at. Certainly puts me in the fall mood. The leaves in Ohio got into their fall color this week and turned orange and red and yellow - brilliant in the sun. won't last long but I am taking it all in while it lasts. God's beauty for sure!
ReplyDeleteI do love the colors of fall, too, Jean, and it sounds like it's been a grand one this year in Ohio. Enjoy it all while it lasts!
DeleteLove and blessings!
It’s so great to see your church community coming together for the pumpkin patch, especially with the help of those strong young guys. It’s inspiring how everyone pitches in, no matter their age. I love how you all spread God’s love through this event. I hope lots of people come by to buy pumpkins and feel the warmth of your community! Wishing you and Danny all the best as you help out this season. Amen! 🎃🙏
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for your kind thoughts and well wishes here, Veronica. Yes, we are so grateful for the help those young men provided and for all in the church who are volunteering their time to running the patch. It's such a great way to connect personally and show Jesus' love to those in our community.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Hi Martha Jane, your pics are lovely. It is very good that you use Halloween as a fund raiser. I hope Danny recovers soon . God bless.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Brenda. Danny is getting to be more like his old self with each passing day, but we both realize a trauma like he suffered takes time to overcome. We simply sign up for the pumpkin patch when both of us can be there.
DeleteLove and blessings!
Wonderful photos my dear, wish you a happy Halloween.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Snobe! Happy All Hallow's Eve to you, too.
DeleteLove and blessings!