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St Lucy Parish Church

Diocese of Barbados Nestfield, St. Lucy

HARVEST

THANKSGIVING 15th March 2026

Rector: The Rev’d Hugh Sandiford

Deacon: The Rev’d Sharon King

Seminarian: Mr. Shaquan Thomas

Church Wardens: Justice Anthony Blackman

Mr. William Yearwood

Organist: Mr. Matthew Banfield

Sexton: Mr. Noverton Gibson

Our Vision:

To be an authentic community where all are accepted, loved and disciples are formed!

CONTACT US: Telephone/Whatsapp: 572-5336/230-9405 Email: stlucychurch1627@yahoo.com A Address: Nesfield, Saint Lucy, Barbados

“Spiritual

OPENING PRAYER

PROCESSION

ORDER OF SERVICE

Awakening, Radiating all things Bright and Beautiful”

HYMNS FOR THE PROCESSION: 713, 717

PRESIDENT: The Lord be with you

ALL: And also with you.

PRESIDENT: Let us proceed in peace

ALL: In the name of Christ, our Lord.

HYMN: 713 - God of the earth and sky

1 God of the earth and sky, Lord of our hills and plains, Ruler of night and day, bright sun and cooling rains O bounteous Lord, to thee we raise Our harvest hymn of joyful praise.

2 Mid dancing azure seas, upheld by thy command, our lovely islands rise in tropic splendour planned. And we are stewards of thy grace until we see thee face to face.

3 Thine is the fruitful field, the broad-leaved plantain thine; banana, slender cane, tall palm and lowly vine. Thine own, O Lord, we bring to thee, of all thy bounty rich and free.

Star-apples, purple-dyed ‘mid leaves of bronze and green! With ackees' scarlet hue gay citrus gold is seen. Thou matchless artist! Here may we thine own eternal beauty see.

5 God of love! Not alone in nature's form we find that thou are great and good, and merciful and kind: for Jesus died, that we might come to share our heavenly Father's home.

6 As we with thankful hearts these festive anthems sing, and gladly to thy house our harvest offering bring, O, help us Blessed Trinity, ourselves to consecrate to thee.

Hymn: 717 - Praise, O praise our God and King

1 Praise, O praise our God and King; hymns of adoration sing; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure.

2 Praise him that he made the sun day by day his course to run; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure;

3 And the silver moon by night, shining with her gentle light; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure.

Praise him that he gave the rain to mature the swelling grain; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure;

5 And hath bid the fruitful field crops of precious increase yield; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure.

6 Praise him for our harvest-store, he hath filled the garner-floor; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure.

7 And for richer food than this, pledge of everlasting bliss; for his mercies still endure ever faithful, ever sure.

8 Glory to our bounteous King; glory let creation sing; glory to the Father, Son, and blest Spirit, Three in One.

INTROIT HYMN: 725 - We plough the fields and scatter

1 We plough the fields and scatter The good seed on the land, But it is fed and watered By God's almighty hand: He sends the snow in winter, The warmth to swell the grain, The breezes and the sunshine, And soft, refreshing rain.

Refrain:

All good gifts around us Are sent from heaven above; Then thank the Lord, O thank the Lord, For all his love.

2 He only is the maker Of all things near and far; He paints the wayside flower, He lights the evening star; The winds and waves obey him, By him the birds are fed; Much more to us, his children, He gives our daily bread.

Refrain

3 We thank thee then, O Father, For all things bright and good, The seed time and the harvest, Our life, our health, our food. Accept the gifts we offer For all thy love imparts, And what thou most desirest, Our humble, thankful hearts.

Refrain

President: Good morning! A warm welcome, brothers and sisters in Christ as we celebrate our Harvest Thanksgiving.

A SONG OF CREATION

(BCP page 49-51)

Officiant: Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

ALL: In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

Officiant: Let the people of God glorify the Lord, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

ALL: Glorify the Lord, O priests and servants of the Lord, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

Officiant: Glorify the Lord, O spirits and souls of the righteous, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

ALL: You that are holy and humble of heart, glorify the Lord, * praise him and highly exalt Him forever.

Officiant: Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

ALL: In the firmament of His power, glorify the Lord, * praise Him and highly exalt Him forever.

FIRST LESSON: Deuteronomy 8:1-3, 6-10 (17-20) [Ms Celeste Greaves]

READER: A reading from the word of God written in the book of Deuteronomy, chapter eight beginning at the first verse.

ILLUMINATION:

READER: Moses said to all Israel: This entire commandment that I command you today you must diligently observe, so that you may live and increase, and go in and occupy the land that the Lord promised on oath to your ancestors. Remember the long way that the Lord your God has led you these forty years in the wilderness, in order to humble you, testing you to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commandments. He humbled you by letting you hunger, then by feeding you with manna, with which neither you nor your ancestors were acquainted, in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Therefore keep the commandments of the Lord your God, by walking in his ways and by fearing him. For the Lord your God is bringing you into a good land, a land with flowing streams, with springs and underground waters welling up in valleys and hills, a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive trees and honey,

a land where you may eat bread without scarcity, where you will lack nothing, a land whose stones are iron and from whose hills you may mine copper. You shall eat your fill and bless the Lord your God for the good land that he has given you. [Do not say to yourself, "My power and the might of my own hand have gotten me this wealth." But remember the Lordy our God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, so that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your ancestors, as he is doing today. If you do forget the Lord your God and follow other gods to serve and worship them, I solemnly warn you today that you shall surely perish. Like the nations that the Lord is destroying before you, so shall you perish, because you would not obey the voice of the Lord your God.]

READER: The word of the Lord.

ALL: Thanks be to God.

PSALM: 65

1. Thou, O God, art praised in Sion : and unto thee shall the vow be performed in Jerusalem.

2. Thou that hearest the prayer : unto thee shall all flesh come.

3. My misdeeds prevail against me : O be thou merciful unto our sins.

4. Blessed is the man whom thou choosest, and receivest unto thee : he shall dwell in thy court, and shall be satisfied with the pleasures of thy house, even of thy holy temple.

5. Thou shalt shew us wonderful things in thy righteousness, O God of our salvation : thou that art the hope of all the ends of the earth, and of them that remain in the broad sea.

6. Who in his strength setteth fast the mountains : and is girded about with power.

7. Who stilleth the raging of the sea : and the noise of his waves, and the madness of the people.

8. They also that dwell in the uttermost parts of the earth shall be afraid at thy tokens : thou that makest the outgoings of the morning and evening to praise thee.

9. Thou visitest the earth, and blessest it : thou makest it very plenteous.

10. The river of God is full of water : thou preparest their corn, for so thou providest for the earth.

11. Thou waterest her furrows, thou sendest rain into the little valleys thereof : thou makest it soft with the drops of rain, and blessest the increase of it.

12. Thou crownest the year with thy goodness : and thy clouds drop fatness.

13. They shall drop upon the dwellings of the wilderness : and the little hills shall rejoice on every side.

14. The folds shall be full of sheep : the valleys also shall stand so thick with corn, that they shall laugh and sing.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

SECOND LESSON: James 1:17-18, 21-27

[Mr Richard Green –General Secretary , NUPW]

READER: A reading from the word of God written in the book of James, chapter one beginning at the seventeenth verse.

ILLUMINATION:

Every generous act of giving, with every perfect gift, is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. In fulfillment of his own purpose he gave us birth by the word of truth, so that we would become a kind of first fruits of his creatures. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act— they will be blessed in their doing. If any think they are religious, and do not bridle their tongues but deceive their hearts, their religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to care for orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

READER: The word of the Lord.

ALL: Thanks be to God.

Anthem: Psalm 100 arr. Roger Gittens [Choir]

GRADUAL HYMN: 719 - Praise and thanksgiving, Father we offer (verses 1-3)

1 Praise and thanksgiving, Father we offer, for all things living thou madest good; harvest of sown fields, fruits of the orchard hay from the mown fields, blossom and wood.

2 Bless thou the labour we bring to serve thee, that with our neighbour we may be fed. Sowing or tilling, we would work with thee; harvesting, milling, for daily bread.

3 Father, providing food for thy children, thy wisdom guiding teaches us share one with another, so that rejoicing with us, our brother may know thy care.

THE GOSPEL - Matthew 6:25-33

DEACON: The Lord be with you.

ALL: And also with you.

DEACON: A reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew, the sixth chapter beginning at the twenty-fifth verse.

ALL: Glory to Christ our Saviour

ILLUMINATION:

PRESIDENT: Jesus said, "I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are

you not of more value than they? And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, `What will we eat?' or `What will we drink?' or `What will we wear?' For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."

DEACON: This is the Gospel of Christ . ALL: Praise to Christ our Lord.

HYMN 719 (verse 4)

4 Then will thy blessing reach every people; freely confessing thy gracious hand. Where thy will reigneth no one will hunger; thy love sustaineth; fruitful the land.

THE ADDRESS

THE APOSTLES CREED (BCP Page 106)

PRESIDENT: Let us now stand and reaffirm our faith in our Lord Jesus Christ in the words of the Apostles Creed.

ALL:

I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again.

He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

INTERCESSION FOR HARVEST [Church Army]

READER: Heavenly Father, we pray for your Church throughout the world, that we may be faithful to our baptism, with the dawn of each day, may we be awakened to the beauty of the earth, and rejoice in the wonder and diversity of creation, in all its forms and colour. Lord, hear us.