More Workers

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.” Matthew 9:36-38

THERE WAS JESUS, surrounded by confused and helpless crowds of people —people who were crippled by the effects of sin and confused about how to please God. Jesus hurt for them and with them. But there was so much more need than what could be met by the twelve disciples who surrounded him. So Jesus told these twelve to pray to the one who is in charge of the harvest of souls and to ask him to send more workers into his fields. By the end of the book of Acts, it becomes clear that their prayers were being answered. Workers had spread out throughout the known world, proclaiming the Good News. More and more sheep were hearing the voice of their Shepherd and coming into the safety of the fold.

Still today there are multitudes of confused and helpless people. And still compassion drives workers to leave the comforts of home to learn new cultures and languages. Still the Lord of the harvest sends workers who are willing to be persecuted and misunderstood and willing to give their lives away in order to announce the good news about the Kingdom. And still we are to pray for the Lord of the harvest to send more workers into his fields. Perhaps that’s because when we do so, our hearts are drawn away from our own causes, and we become more invested in his cause. Surely if we give ourselves to pray for more workers to be sent into his fields, it opens us up to pray that we might be those workers and that our children might leave the safety of our homes and the closeness of our communities to work in his fields.

Lord, you are in charge of the harvest of the souls of men and women. Only your Spirit can call and convict and convert. But your Spirit uses the proclamation of your Word to bring this about. So I’m praying that you will send more workers, more proclaimers to bring in a harvest of souls. But I can’t pray for more workers without also praying that you would show us what it means for our family to be workers in your fields. And I can’t pray for ________ without offering her up to be a worker in your fields, even if that proves uncomfortable or costly.