“The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers into his harvest field”(Matthew 9:37).
“Prayer is the only adequate way to multiply our efforts fast enough to reap the harvest God desires.” – Wesley L. Duewel
When I was growing up, my family lived on a hill overlooking a huge cotton farm. All spring and summer, we watched the cotton plants grow. They began as tiny sprouts peeking up from underground, then they grew rapidly. By late summer, the field was densely covered in green plants. By early fall, the yellow cotton flowers faded away, leaving cotton balls in their place. Then the plants died and turned brown. Now, the field was almost completely white. When the field looked like it was covered in snow, I knew the harvesting was about to begin. I always remembered when Jesus told his disciples, “Behold the fields are white unto harvest.” Jesus was talking about grain fields, but the principal is the same. There comes a time when the fields are ready to harvest.
How can we help harvest the fields of lost souls in this world? In Matthew 9:37, Jesus told his disciples to pray for laborers. He knew there was a huge harvest waiting to be gathered and he also knew that it would require lots of work to bring the souls into the kingdom of God. So, he told his disciples to pray for laborers.
I believe the disciple did pray! I know they prayed because God answered their prayers. In the next chapter, Jesus sends out laborers into the harvest field of Judea. These laborers were the disciples. In other words, the disciples became the answer to their own prayers!
I believe that when the disciples began to pray, God softened their hearts and prepared them to bring in the harvest. When you begin to pray for souls to be brought into the kingdom of heaven, God will use you to save people. You can become the answer to your own prayers. If you want God to send you to a specific country, begin praying for that country. If you want God to use you in a specific type of ministry, begin praying for those who have needs in that area. This will prepare your heart to reach out to those in need, and once your heart is ready, God will use you to touch lives!
Check out Daniel King’s book: The Power of Prayer
