Displaying items by tag: Hope for the Countryside

This year, all three of the biblical autumn feasts (Leviticus 23:23-43) take place in September. The Feast of Trumpets on 6-7 September is followed by the Day of Atonement on 15-16 September and the Feast of Tabernacles on 20-27 September. Among much else, Tabernacles is a 'harvest festival', celebrating the ‘ingathering’ of the summer harvest (Exodus 23:16). Just as the spring feasts (Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost) were fulfilled at Jesus’ first coming and by the sending of the Holy Spirit, so the autumn feasts will be fulfilled by His return, the gathering of His people to meet Him, the redemption of Israel, and the Messianic Age. As we celebrate this year’s harvest, both from the fields and of those who have been added to His Kingdom, give thanks that God is working His purpose out and that the time draws ever nearer when ‘the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea’ (Hab. 2:14).

From 19 June to 4 September, mission teams from Through Faith Mission are walking the ‘Via Beata’ footpath through the countryside of central England and Wales. The teams are going out literally without bread or money and no agenda or programme, trusting the Lord to provide both their needs and opportunities to share the gospel and serve others (Matthew 10:1-15; Luke 10:1-20). By mid-June, around 100 people had signed up for one or more of the eleven weeks. A similar number have pledged to pray. Join them in praying that the Lord will use the teams to bring the hope of the Gospel to many in the countryside of Britain and encourage rural churches along the way and add to their number. Also you are invited to join ‘Hope Countryside Online Prayer Gathering’ on 31 July, where intercession will be for the churches and communities for rural Britain. See

In June, hay meadows burst forth in a glorious blaze of colour. For centuries, flower-rich hay meadows were a defining feature of our countryside, providing hay for livestock through the winter and essential habitats for many different flora, fauna and fungi. In the 20th century, however, most hay meadows gave way to more intensively managed grassland. But they can be restored by ‘impoverishing’ the soil (withholding grazing, cutting hay later in the season, and sowing a semi-parasitic plant called hay rattle). Likewise, the Lord uses discipline to refine us; then, in time, we blossom and bear fruit to His praise and glory. Give thanks for the beauty of our meadows and for the way they reflect the glory of their Creator. Give thanks to the One who sends the rain to water the meadows and whose coming was, is, and will be, ‘like rain upon the meadows’.

As Nick James of the Animal Health Agency reported at our April prayer gathering, the recent round of bird flu is over and there has been good progress in the battle against bovine TB. At the same event, one family said that their farm was finally clear of TB after being shut down for fifteen months. Give thanks for answered prayers. Pray for livestock farmers who have suffered outbreaks of these diseases or feel threatened by future outbreaks. Pray that the agency will be alert to future threats (including approaching swine fever).

23 April is St George’s Day. National identity is controversial in our contemporary culture, but belonging to a nation is important to many people. Solzhenistsyn saw nations as the wealth of mankind. Dostoevsky saw them as moral personalities. God Himself created the nations and determines their boundaries. Rural land plays a special role in our nations, providing a concrete focus for abstract ideas of national identity. Give thanks for the distinctiveness and unity of the nations of the UK and for their diverse and beautiful landscapes. Pray for the Lord to prosper the particular gifts and callings of each nation. As many seek independence, pray for the future of the United Kingdom. Pray especially that believers, whose first citizenship is in the Kingdom of God, will be effective salt and light, reaching out to all nations with loving intercession and mission, whatever our political relationships.

Hedgerows play an important role in the British countryside. They mark boundaries, shape landscapes, provide wildlife havens, and control drought, pollution and soil erosion. As enclaves of relatively 'wild nature' amidst sometimes intensively managed farmland, and providing all these services, they are also powerful symbols of God's loving and caring presence (through His creation and His people) in the midst of sometimes destructive human activity and endeavour. However, many of the best hedgerows have declined in recent decades and need to be repaired, protected, and maintained. Give thanks for the beauty and usefulness of our hedgerows and pray that landowners will care better for them.

The Agriculture Bill has now been finalised and received royal assent. The good news is the setting up of a trade and agriculture commission is to be included. Its purpose is to protect the UK's higher standards of environmental protection, animal welfare and food quality in farming and food production against imports produced to lower standards. The new legislation will bring substantial change in how farming and food production are supported; pray for our farmers as they adapt (Isaiah 28:24-29). See also

Hidden by other news, the Agriculture Bill 2020 (bit.ly/agbill20) has been bouncing between the Commons and the Lords for several months, but has now been finalised and received royal assent. The good news is that Lord Curry’s amendment, the setting up of a trade and agriculture commission, has been included. Its purpose is to protect the UK's higher standards of environmental protection, animal welfare, and food quality in farming and food production against imports produced to lower standards. Thank the Lord for godly intervention and pray for our Government and for those who work in our food industry (1 Timothy 2:1-4). The new legislation will bring substantial change in how farming and food production are supported; pray for our farmers as they adapt (Isaiah 28:24-29). Sadly, some rural chaplains report that recent months have seen an increase in levels of stress and suicides, especially amongst younger farmers.

Late summer has seen our hedgerows laden with fruits and berries, and ancient oaks bowed under the weight of acorns. Their deep roots have stood the test of time and enabled them to remain fruitful through drought and storm. Give thanks for this sign of the Lord’s steadfast faithfulness in uncertain times and His promise of future growth and harvest, material and spiritual. Covid-19 has led to businesses closing and job losses nationally. Rural pubs can’t trade under the new regulations. Many rural communities are heavily dependent on tourism, hospitality, and seasonal work, and coronavirus has further exposed the weaknesses of this narrow economic base: yet those communities also have great potential to contribute to the recovery of the nation’s economy. Pray for all who have lost jobs and businesses, asking especially that they will find a hope and a future in the One whose plans for us are for our welfare and peace (Jeremiah 29:11).

Most crops will get harvested. But yields are low, and many farmers will feel they have ‘sown much, but reaped little’ (Haggai 1:6). Yet, given the weather conditions earlier this year, farmers are glad to have a crop at all, while many fruit trees have yielded well. Give thanks for this sign of the Lord’s continuing mercy and faithfulness. Pray for better conditions this autumn and next spring, so that crops can make a good start and yield well next year. Pray for farmers to recognise their dependence on the One who causes the crops to grow (Psalm 104:14 and 64:9-13) and reach out to seek and know Him as their Saviour and Lord. The Agriculture Bill will continue its progress towards royal assent. Pray for the Government, the NFU, and for all involved in shaping the future of farming and food production (1 Timothy 2:1-2).