Harvesters

Our scripture is from Matthew 9:37-38:

Then [Jesus] said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

Life can feel like a hamster wheel of daily demands: work, school, relationships, home and church. Is it possible that these daily rhythms as moments filled with possibility for God's mission?

Our text is often understood as a call to action. Christians should get out there and do something for the Great Commission – serve in the church, go on a mission trip, help the homeless. That is not all wrong, but it is not the essence of the matter. There is also this: God is Lord of the harvest.

This has implications: the mission of God is not ours to initiate, carry or fulfil. It belongs to Him. Further, it implies that God is at work all around us. He is already lovingly and persistently drawing people to Himself. He is doing that in the places we frequent regularly – work, school, coffee shop. Are we paying attention?

Many of us partition our lives into two halves. We do the spiritual stuff: go to church, have devotions, attend Bible study. And we have the rest of life: laundry, work, volunteering, studying. What happens if we take the dividing wall away? What if we see the ordinary stuff of life filed with the divine? What if the harvest is right here—the people we spend our days working, studying, playing with?

If God is present everywhere and if the harvest belongs to God, then we must believe that he is with those people we encounter daily. There is really no such thing as church missions. There is only one mission—God's mission. We either join with God in his redemptive work or we don't. Mission isn't something we create or carry alone. It begins with God, and he's at work all around us, even when we're not aware of it.

There is a popular missional phrase, "You don't need to bring Jesus into your workplace – He's already there." The harvest is already plentiful, not in some faraway place, but right now in our neighbourhoods, our workplaces, the stores we frequent. And Jesus is the Lord of it.

Let's ask Jesus to open our eyes to see the harvest. Let's ask him to open our ears to hear the spiritual questions people are asking. Let's ask him to help us join in the conversations that are already happening. Let's ask that he gives us confidence to participate in the harvest, remembering that we are not responsible for it.

As you journey on, go with the blessing of God:

Wherever God takes you today, may He fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit and that you may live carefully—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity.