Season 4 Episode 1 of The Chosen was broadcast last weekend and we were delighted to have it on again. Very interesting that the church we visited used many of the same Scriptures and images that the show did. Made me wonder if they have an “in” with the program or if it was just the Holy Spirit at work, again!

When I attended the Soul Collage retreat in May of this year I found this picture. It moved me deeply. I share it with you not knowing if there is a copyright on it or not. If there is, my apologies to the photographer.

I immediately thought of the prayer quoted in the Eucharist by some churches:

"Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation,
for through your goodness we have received
the wine we offer you:
fruit of the vine and work of human hands,
it will become our spiritual drink."

And like in the Chosen, the website Jewish Voice says:

Blessed are You O Lord, our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.

To me, it is no small thing the the Lord draws all of these things together for us. It is my plan to write the prayer of blessing/thanksgiving on the photo.

When we had our very first house on 1/2 acre of land, Bob not only planted a large garden but also wanted to grow grapes. And grow them he did! I quickly learned that if I was going to help harvest the grapes I better wear rubber gloves (thicker than cotton garden gloves) in case the wasps and bees were there ahead of me. Now we are fortunate if we can purchase fresh concord grapes in a market.

Blessed are You O Lord our God, King of the Universe. May we always see Your hand at work in our midst.