Matthew 9:37 – 38
Then he said to his disciples, The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
The harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few. I think that we need to let the words of Jesus sink into our spirit. There are so many people who do not know Jesus and there are so many people who are in need of the gospel. We cannot ever think that the opportunity is not there but we must look at our willingness to labor. We need laborers! When it comes to spiritual labor we have to believe that part of that laboring is prayer. We have to be a people who are willing to pray and work towards seeing others brought to Jesus. When we know that Jesus is the only one to save man then we know that our evangelism must be cloaked in earnest prayer.
Jesus tells His disciples to pray earnestly for more laborers. Not only do we want the harvest but we need more people who are willing to labor in prayer and in work to see the harvest come in. I think we need to listen to the words of Jesus and not only be laborers but pray for more. It is very important for us to pray earnestly in this fast for the people who do not know Christ, and for more people to develop a love that motivates them to labor for the harvest.
Questions to think about:
1. Are you laboring in prayer and action?
2. What holds you back from laboring in prayer and action?
I love labor pains from praying too hard… Come to think of it, I haven’t prayed like that since The Call in Novemeber. Dang, I’m a slacker…Thank you Lord, for showing me where I’m lazy.
For me, i don’t think meeting people isn’t a labor. Maintaing those relationships however is a different story. Thats were discipleship gets messy, in your face, and meaningful.
As the years pass by, I see that I’m getting a little wiser on being a farmer for the kingdom, but i still have a LONG way to go. My prayer is that God will show me how to get to know the seasons of peoples lives in that harvest field, and know just when to water, uproot, nurture , plant, and reap. In my mind, i can guess when those times come, but i repent for not turning to the lead Gardener for advice EVERY time.
I don’t think this goes with what you wrote up top but i had to share.
I’m amazed going back to our journals from last years 07 hunger week and the things that we fasted for. Everything that we fasted for, we can now see was the road that God had us on all year long. It wasn’t the way we thought he would do it or even did we realize it was what he was doing but through it all He stayed so faithful to our requests. It brings true the scripture that says “You may ask Me for anything in My name and I will do it” John 14;14, I believe as long as it is in his will he will do it. We feel like God has provided more then what we could have even anticipated. Even some of the things that we are fasting for this year are just the next step in what we started a year ago. But we didn’t even realize it until Tues. I’m so excited to see what the next year will bring. I’m so reassured in Gods ability to take care of me and my families needs, and more so His love that He has for us. Even as we look back now the very places we thought that we were in a valley of despair it was all in his plan to bring us the healing and bring us to the place he needed to help us over come the next mountain on our 07 fasting list. I’m so grateful for the hunger weeks at our church, there is so much to coming together corporately as one body and dieing to our self for one cause… God, its all for His glory. I’m also so amazed as I look around at the church that I am united with, and where God has us in our lives right now, there is no place I would rather be on this earth.