Readings:
Deuteronomy 26: 1-11;
Psalm 100;
Philippians 4: 4-9;
John 6: 25-35

Collect:
Creator God you made the goodness of the land,
the riches of the sea and the rhythm of the seasons;
as we thank you for the harvest, may we cherish and respect
this planet and its peoples, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Reflection

There is something quite magical about the smell of fresh bread. The other day we went on a secondary school open evening and as we entered one of the corridors we were greeted by this glorious smell, that almost pulled us along until we found the source. The catering students were busy baking fresh bread for people to enjoy accompanied with fresh homemade butter. It was delicious. There was something quite comforting about it, taking you to a warm happy place. Every time I catch that smell of fresh bread it just makes me feel happy.

For those of you who make your own bread, you will know that feeling and the joy the process of making the bread. I particularly find kneading the bread quite therapeutic and almost mediative. One of the first pioneer churches was set up around making bread and has become an inclusive community that comes together to make and share bread, enjoying time with others and giving people space to talk, reflect and encounter God in a variety of ways. If you’re interested in finding our more do visit their website: https://www.somewhere-else.org.uk/

Bread features heavily in the bible whether it’s Sarah making bread for the three strangers who appear out of the desert and tell Abraham that he and Sarah are going to have a child. Then there’s the story of the widow in Zarephath who invites Elijah back to her home, when he asks her about for a piece of bread, where she uses her last bit of flour and oil. Moving to the New Testament you’ve got the miracle of the five loaves feeding over 5,000 people and in the prayer that we say, often without thinking, we ask that God will give us our daily bread. These stories of bread often revolve around the theme of hospitality, sharing, sacrificial giving and ultimately lead us to today’s gospel when Jesus describes himself as the bread of life.

The people have come looking for Jesus, after being fed at what could be described as the great picnic. Jesus seems to chastise them for only seeking something that will nourish their physical hunger and then goes on to basically say that they should be more interested in their spiritual hunger and invites them to receive the bread of life. It is this bread that is important. We are not just physical beings, but we are spiritual beings, something that isn’t always apparent in our education system. And I guess it raises the question for each one of us about how we are spiritually nourished? Are we in a spiritual desert or an oasis?

These are big questions and there will be times in our lives when we do feel like we are in a desert and others when we feel that we’re in an oasis. The important thing is that we are aware and know how to receive that spiritual nourishment. That might be through worship, through study, through having a spiritual friend or, as I would recommend, all of these.

This time of harvest, when we give thanks to God for the generous bounty of the earth and for providing us with that physical nourishment. May we also take time to think about our spiritual nourishment that Jesus was referring to. As we pray give us this day our daily bread, may we see this not just as meeting our physical hunger but also our spiritual hunger. May we take this time to give thanks for the renewal and refreshment of our bodies and our souls and in the busyness of life let us not neglect the spiritual side of our lives.

Loving God,
we thank you for the way you want to nourish us.
May we find ourselves in that oasis with you
where we can find that refreshment and renewal.
As we live our lives,
may we daily find that nourishment of body and soul
as we seek to be your disciples each and every day. Amen.

Mike Morris