Yesterday, a thousand dollars worth of pumpkins sat on our church lawn. Our youth and their parents had faithfully tended the pumpkin patch in hopes of big sales. We sold $14000 worth of pumpkins this year. But all the leftovers are on the lawn today and their final destination this evening will be the dumpster. Some years we are able to find a farmer who will take the pumpkins, but this year we have not found a willing farmer.

The now unpopular pumpkins remind me of this most holy days in the Christian year. All Saints Day. Halloween is All Saints Eve. Today is a day for remembering the saints and sinners who have passed on to God before us.

Who are the Saints you remember today? I remember my Grandmother McNaughton, Minnie Lee. She was the church treasurer for decades as Oakley United Methodist Church. She faithfully typed the bulletin and kept the books for her church as long as I knew her. She gave to anyone in need and taught her children the importance of generosity. My Grammer Sharp, Dorothy, was another saint, who taught me about unconditional love and everything I needed to know about long division. I can list many church friends and members through the years who taught me how to be a better pastor and person.

Karl Romstedt taught me how to learn from my mistakes and how to handle people with humor and grace. Jay Saner taught me how to laugh with the silly stuff we can get hung up with in the church. Kathy Phelps, a young mother who died at her own hand, taught me that depression is real and must be taken seriously. Euphemia Nottingham taught me how to listen for deeper lessons and messages of older citizens in the church. The list is long and I can’t write it all now.

Who are around you has taught you something you needed to learn? Have you thanked them? Do it. Don’t let life be like pumpkins which are worth something one day and worth nothing the next.