Command 21 : Pray for Laborers | Day 141

See the Harvest!

Money was running out for Jack, a struggling businessman. In fact, his financial problems had become so great that he had decided to leave town for a few weeks so he could "sort things out." One day Jack was walking through some woods when a man came up to him. Assuming that Jack was the owner of the forest, he said, "I will give you $3,000 for that tree behind you." When asked why he would pay so much for one tree, the man said, "I represent a lumber company and this is a virgin forest of mature black walnut trees. They are worth a lot."

Jack took down the man's name and phone number and began trying to locate the owner of the land. When Jack found the owner, he told him about the lumber company that wanted to harvest the trees. The owner said he had no time to fool with trees and lumber companies and suggested that Jack buy the land and make the arrangements to sell the trees himself. The land was bought for a fraction of its true value, and even now Jack continues to make a profit from harvesting the trees.

The original landowner failed to see the value of his potential harvest. All he saw was "a bunch of trees." We make the same mistake when we view crowds as simply "a bunch of people" instead of valuable individuals for whom Christ died. Each one is a unique creation of God, and God wants to "gather" them to Himself. Therefore, He commands:

Command Twenty-One: “... The harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few; pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:37-38).

It is the souls of people that need to be gathered in the Lord's harvest. As His laborers, our first step is to “lift up ... [our] eyes, and look on the fields” (John 4:35). But what are we to see when we look at the fields?

• See people who are ready. Jesus said that the fields are "white already to harvest." This indicates that the fruit is ripe and ready; it simply needs to be gathered. (See John 4:35.)
• See the work of others. There would be no harvest if others had not gone before us to plant and water. We will be reaping the rewards of their labors. (See I Corinthians 3:6.)
• See the harvest as belonging to God, not to us. One person plants and another waters, but it is God Who gives the increase. (See I Corinthians 3:7.)
• See the physical needs of people. We can show God's love to others by seeking to meet their tangible needs as well as their spiritual needs. (See I John 3:17.)
• See that the time of harvest is short. Crops that are not gathered when they are ripe will rot in the fields. This should compel us to do all we can to gather them now! (See John 9:4.)

When we truly see the value of the harvest and the urgency of gathering it in, we will be motivated to obey Christ's command to pray for laborers. Therefore, let's begin to see the "multitudes" of people in shopping centers, airports, and other places through the eyes of the Lord of the harvest!