October - Diane Littler

Dear Friends

Autumn is the ‘season of mists and mellow fruitfulness’, to quote from John Keats’ poem, and a time for gathering – the gathering of crops, and the gathering of people to give thanks to God, to share and to celebrate. 

At September’s All-age worship, we gathered together to praise and thank God for all creatures great and small, especially our pets.  We have a wonderful border collie as part of our family and I recall with joy our visits to the small sheep farm in North Wales where she was born.  We would watch her relatives in action on the farm, and on one occasion competing in sheepdog trials.  You may have watched the television programme ‘One Man and His Dog’ and marvelled, like me, at the relationship between shepherd and dog as they worked together.  The dog listens carefully for the commands of its master or mistress, ready and eager to obey.  This disciplined training is needed for work out on the beautiful, but often bleak, unfenced hills.  At this time of year, shepherds can be seen gathering their sheep and bringing them down from higher ground ready for the winter.  The trust that has developed between shepherd and dog means that even a wandering or lost sheep can be found and brought into safe keeping. 

Observing our border collie, I realise how much her behaviour is influenced by her acute hearing.  Her ears swivel like satellite dishes as she listens for different sounds, ready to respond.  This reminds me of the importance of listening in our lives – listening to God and to those around us.  Like the sheepdog, we need to be alert to the signals we receive from Christ, our Good Shepherd.  We are called to trust and obey him, to take risks and show his love, until … ‘all is safely gathered in’. 

Yours in Christ,

 Diane Littler.