The Harvest

As we’re getting ready to celebrate Thanksgiving, I can’t help but to think back to the first Thanksgiving celebrated by the settlers in 1621.  After a difficult crossing from Europe in 1620 that took sixty-six days, the settlers endured their first brutal winter where many remained on board their ship where exposure, scurvy, and other disease afflicted many.  Only half of those who made the trip across the ocean survived to see their first spring in New England.  

          But the settlers, after forming relationships with Native Americans who helped them learn to live off the land, eventually celebrated their first successful corn harvest in November of 1621.  They celebrated because they were grateful to God that He had granted them a bountiful harvest, recognizing that this harvest came from God’s hand!

          At one point in American History, God was central to the lives of those who came to the New World.  American history began with men who traveled great distances to reach the New World with the hope of finding religious freedom and liberty rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  As settlers left their homes abroad and settled in North America, this message of liberty in Christ became their theme and all through New England, settlers set up their communities with the notion that God should be at the center of life in this new land.  Life spread through New England and the fingerprint of the importance of the church can be seen even today as little white church buildings still stand at the center of our oldest communities.

          But today, while those white churches tell of a time when the message of Christ was central to life in New England, the sad truth is that these pulpits now exist to proclaim truths other than Christ and Christ crucified.  Institutions like Harvard, Yale and Brown which used to exist to train Gospel preachers, now seek to silence those who would proclaim the name of Christ.  And today, the end result is that New England has become the least religious region in our nation, and all six New England states rank in the Top 10 least religious states in the United States.  For Christians who call New England “home” this is a sobering fact. 

          This week, I am writing this article for two reasons.  First, as we celebrate Thanksgiving, it is important that we look at our lives, even amidst our struggles, and recognize that God has been faithful to us.  Though life may not look like we want it to at times, the truth is, God has sustained us.  And that is worth to be celebrated!

          The second reason, though, is to get us to think about how quickly our love for God fades.  To think that those who came to New England were motivated by their desire to worship God seems like distant history.  Instead, the trend is to push God out of our lives and live for ourselves instead.  Often, God isn’t welcome in our towns, our schools, sometimes our homes, and sadly enough, even in our churches.  The Gospel is often viewed as foolishness, a fairy tale, or a mere superstition.  

          But with such unbelief surrounding us everywhere, we know that the opportunity to proclaim the Gospel has never been more important!  Jesus said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest,” (Matthew 9:37-38).  There are people everywhere who need to hear the Good News of the Gospel proclaimed that there is a God who loves us and provides for us.  He is the One who has rescued us from sin and called us His own!  In Christ, we find life and meaning and the hope of the Kingdom in Glory!

          This is why our church is committed to supporting Cultivate New England, who is working on planting a church in Boston.  Our desire is to plant churches in New England where this Gospel message spreads and brings life to people who so desperately need to hear it.  Our hope is that as we plant this church, another will follow…and another…and another so that the Gospel would be central in New England again, much like it was when the settlers first came!  

          So, as we celebrate Thanksgiving, be thankful for the love that God has shown you in Christ!  And  please remember to pray for Cultivate New England, Pastor Kristian and Mary Anderson (our church planters) and consider how God might be leading you to support this ministry so that His name may be spread throughout New England.  The harvest is plentiful!

In Christ,
Pastor Evan

 
To learn about how you can support Cultivate New England, visit www.cultivatenewengland.org.