A Rich Harvest

“The harvest is rich, but the workers are few. Pray that the Lord of the harvest will send out workers to gather in his harvest.” Matthew 9:37b, 38

To me, this is one of the most counter-intuitive sayings of Jesus. In fact, my ear almost always hears Him saying, “The harvest is rich, the workers are few. Pray the Lord of harvest to send out workers…and make sure you are one of them!” But that is not what He says at all.

I am an evangelist at heart. I love the moment when a person has come to the point where, hearing of God’s love and knowing they need forgiveness, they finally say “Yes” to Jesus. I used to push for that moment, but have become less assertive over time. I think I have learned that this whole conversion business has more to do with God and far less to do with me.

Don’t get me wrong, I need to be available. I need to be prepared. I need to know what “the gospel” is myself, so I can share it with others. I need to look for the harvest that is ready all around me in my own world. For some, that may mean door-to-door canvassing or carrying tracts that distill the gospel into a few pointed passages.

But, for far too long I felt the pressure. When I was in college I attended Campus Crusade for Christ meetings. We were given the Four Spiritual Laws tracts and encouraged to see the campus as our harvest field. I remember sitting in the cafeteria one day, tracts in my shirt pocket, feeling the guilt that I couldn’t conjure the courage to go to a table to ask a complete stranger, “Have you heard of the Four Spiritual Laws?” I felt I was less than obedient if I wasn’t at least willing to button-hole a couple of strangers each semester.

I don’t blame any of that on Campus Crusade; it probably had more to do with my desire to succeed and have God like me. At any rate, I have become more comfortable about personal evangelism the older I get. Not because I can approach complete strangers getter, but because I have learned how much the Holy Spirit is involved in the heart which begins to turn toward God.

I do not think I have “evangelized” a complete stranger in years. But, I have many friends who have not yet decided to follow Jesus. I have shared the gospel with some of them, but not all. I am no longer pressured to be the method by which everyone comes to Christ. The question is not “how many”, but “how available”.

If Jesus wants me to “pray the Lord of the Harvest”, then that should be my first priority. And, as I ask Father God to send people into the fields, I am learning dependence. I am learning to understand His heart for a world full of people who need to hear of His love for us through Christ. I become acquainted with the One to whom the entire harvest belongs. And, yes, I make myself available as one of the workers in the field.

But, I no longer feel like it is all up to me. I can go to a County Fair and not feel obliged to accost people in line with spiritual questions. But, I am always looking for the opening. I am always asking the Father who is ready. And, as I pray the Lord of the Harvest, He is also making me into the type of person that might people might actually enjoy talking to.

In fact, seeing “the harvest” through Jesus’ eyes may be the most important part of this prayer. Just before Jesus appeals we pray for workers He saw the crowds and “had compassion on them because they were harried and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” (verse 36). No wonder approaching strangers with a pocket-size booklet was so difficult; my motivation did not match the Lord of the Harvest’s own heart.

I wanted people to be saved. I wanted them to discover the same joy I had found in Christ. But, I was cornering people in a college cafeteria because that is how I was taught. If I fail to ask the Lord of the Harvest to send workers it may be because I haven’t seen how meaningful the harvest is. Jesus loved the crowds. He saw their pain and brought comfort. He saw them meandering and gave them direction. He saw them beaten down by life’s burdens and offered them His own shoulders to carry them.

No wonder my fellow schoolmates raised an eyebrow when I offered a multi-purpose tract and a memorized sinner’s prayer. Father, I am asking You now; please send workers into Your harvest, and allow us to see it with Your eyes and Your heart.