Harvest Thanksgiving Services 2025
Come, Join In Our Services of Thanksgiving!
Sunday 12th October at 11.30am
Stuart McKimm, Cuningham Memorial
Sunday 12th October at 6.30pm
Scott McMenemy, Ballydown
Special Harvest Offering to Building and Renovation Fund
God's love leads us to look upwards and outwards - to show our praise to Him, and to share His goodness with all.
During October we will also be able to share with others by collecting non-perishable foodstuffs for foodbank donation - these can be left in the vestibule on Sundays.
"Fountain of mercy, God of love, how rich Thy bounties are!
The rolling seasons, as they move, proclaim Thy constant care."
Harvest time is almost upon us once again! The seasons are rolling on, and we find ourselves wakening to increasingly autumnal mornings. We are moving towards one of the fixed points in our church calendar: our services of thanksgiving for the harvest. As the hymn writer put it, "Seedtime and harvest, Lord, alone Thou dost on man bestow. Let him not then forget to own from Whom his blessings flow."
God willing, our services of thanksgiving for the harvest will be held on Sunday 12th October, at 11.30am and 6.30pm, with guest speakers at both. We look forward to Stuart McKimm coming to preach at the morning service. Since he was licensed as a probationer in Donacloney in June 2024, Stuart has been serving as assistant minister in Cuningham Memorial Church, Cullybackey. It is a joy to welcome him into our midst again. The guest preacher at our evening service will be Scott McMenemy. Scott is from Portadown originally, but now is the assistant minister in Ballydown and has a leading role in The Bridge Church in Banbridge. This will be Scott's first visit to Donacloney. If you are able, please come to both these special services when we celebrate the goodness of God. A well-filled meetinghouse will be an encouragement to the two men who have been invited to minister God's Word to us.
The Congregational Committee has decided that, once again, all monies received in the Harvest Thanksgiving offering will be allocated to the church's Building and Renovation Fund (the No.2 Account). This fund is ring-fenced to provide for the costs of maintaining and improving the congregation's property. In the past months, new entrance doors have been fitted to the Church Hall, and necessary repairs made to the manse, and the Committee has arranged for a number of electrical works to be completed through the autumn. The main focus continues to be the eventual refurbishment of the meetinghouse interior, and the Committee is seeking to build a reserve of funds towards this. The work to be done is extensive, and it will be a substantial undertaking. When completed, it should ensure that the meetinghouse is fit for purpose for the years ahead.
Although the offering is being put towards maintenance and repair, our overall focus as a church is on renewal and mission. God is the Fountain of mercy. His love leads us to look upwards and outwards - to show our praise of Him, and to share His goodness with all. One practical expression of this is our collection, throughout October, of donations for the Food Bank operated by Via Wings in Dromore. Gifts of tinned foods, cereal, biscuits, tea, coffee, sugar, long life milk, diluting juice and other non-perishable goods will be greatly appreciated by the Food Bank. You may leave your donations in the meetinghouse vestibule on any Sunday in October.
We also are working with other churches in Donaghcloney and Waringstown towards a special Gospel Outreach in May 2026. "Bridge to Life" is being planned as a two week tent mission, and our prayer is that many in the villages and surrounding area will come to saving faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. We ask you to pray much for this mission. A series of prayer and praise evenings has been arranged for the winter months. The next of these is planned for Wednesday 22nd October in Holy Trinity Church, Waringstown.
In our modern world, a fountain is a decorative feature in a garden or a city square. In former days, the fountain was akin to a village pump or a local well. It was the people's water supply. In Bible times, a fountain usually was a spring - a natural phenomenon, where water continually issued from the ground. The phrase, "Fountain of mercy" does not appear in Scripture, but in the book of Jeremiah we read of God as the spring (or fountain) of living water (see Jeremiah 2:13 and 17:13). The LORD, in His grace, promises to be the source of life to all who turn to Him. He gives that life in His Son, Jesus. (You can read in John 4:10-14 how the Lord Jesus explained this to a woman who spoke to Him beside a well.) The "Bridge to Life" mission will be pointing people to the Fountain of mercy, the God of love.
If the Lord tarries and spares, the rolling seasons soon will carry us to May 2026. We look forward with anticipation to what God will do at that time. Please pray. We also look forward to what the Lord will do in the weeks and months leading up to the fortnight of special mission. His Word is going forth, calling people from sin to repentance and faith. Pray that we may see His Spirit at work in us and around us in these days, until the time comes when, with all His people, we may sing:
"Fountain of love, our praise is Thine! To Thee our songs we'll raise,
and all created nature join in sweet, harmonious praise."
