It is a time of new beginnings for many, myself included, as I began my Ministry among you as Assistant Priest just last Sunday. It has been wonderful to already connect with some of those coming up to the University for the first time, as well as to start to get to know folk who have been a part of the community for much longer too. One thing which has struck me through each of my conversations is the astonishing array of gifts which this community holds collectively, and how many people quietly use their gifts individually in the service of others and the world throughout the week.

So many of these acts of service happen without fanfare; especially in the mundane and unglamorous moments of life. Yet it is ordinary acts of love which can often have the most extraordinary impact on the world; as small buds of kindness, with time and nurturing, bear fruit in due season. As we approach the church’s harvest festival on Sunday, we celebrate the gifts we have been entrusted with by God and re-commit to sharing our material gifts more fairly too. Whether you use your gifts to nurture the green space in Holywell Cemetery at the gardening day on Saturday, make a donation of tins or funds to support the Oxford Community Emergency Foodbank, or give of your time unseen to care for others, God knows that the harvest will indeed plentiful. God’s invitation to us, is to dedicate our daily labour to him and to use our God-given gifts to bring-in and share-out the fruits of his Kingdom.