Thoughts from Philippa
First published in St Anne's September 2026 Newsletter
January is of course the beginning of the year, or advent if you’re looking at the church year, but it’s September that always feels like the start of a new year to me. It might just be years of running on an academic year: at school, university, as a teacher, and of course now with my own children. There is something about the leaves starting to turn and fall, the night’s drawing in, and the first hints of frost that makes me think of new things on the horizon.
That is particularly relevant for us as a family this year, as we have gradually been saying goodbye to Kirkby, to a home, a ministry, a school, colleagues, and friendships. And now we are in Aigburth at the start of many new things, feeling that mix of excitement and nervousness that comes with every new start.
Autumn is of course also when we celebrate harvest. When those with farms and vegetable gardens reap the rewards of their hard work and their faith that something is going on under the ground, even if they can’t see what it is.
It might be worth pausing at this time of year to think of all that has gone before over the last year, in our lives as well as our vegetable patches. What ground have we prepared? What seeds have we planted? Are there things that we hoped would bear fruit that have disappointed us, and have we received many gifts from an area in our life that we didn’t expect? Just as the trees let go of their leaves, sometimes it is right for us too to let go of things that are no longer bearing fruit. Autumn can be a good time to consider these things with God.
Autumn is also a reminder that winter is coming. The nights that feel all cosy now will have lost their appeal by February. We might enjoy pulling out our winter boots and scarves ready for that first chilly day, but at some point, we will get fed up of feeling cold. The leaves look beautiful as they fall, but as January comes and they are all mushy and grey we will be desperate to see some colour come back into the world.
Not all seasons are productive seasons. Some seasons are times of waiting, frustration, unanswered prayer, questioning and loneliness, as is winter for the natural world. There are times when we just have to keep praying, searching and seeking, trusting that spring is coming.
So, I wonder what good things in your life you are celebrating as we celebrate the harvest? I wonder if there are things you need to let go of as the trees let go of their leaves. And I wonder if there are things you just need to sit with, things that seem dormant as the natural world in the winter, yet with the hope of spring in your mind and heart?
Whatever season of life you are in, may you be filled with gratitude for the fruit in your life, may you have courage for the season ahead of you, may you let go of what needs to be released, and may you be patient as you wait on God.
Rev Philippa Lea