It does the heart good to hear such a cry as this, a cry that rises from the very soul of one who has looked upon the fields and seen that they are white already unto harvest. The Master Himself taught us to pray thus, for He saw the multitude fainting and scattered, as sheep having no shepherd. His heart was moved with compassion, and He bade us plead with the Lord of the harvest to send forth laborers. This prayer of yours is but the echo of His own command, and it is after the mind of God. Only the Lord can raise up the right men, fashion them in secret, and thrust them out into His harvest. No bishop, no society, no human device can manufacture a true minister; the finger of God alone can quicken a soul into a burning and a shining light. Therefore, pray on; cry mightily to the God of all grace that He would push forward, constrain, and thrust out chosen vessels to bear His name.
We need to be reminded that the acceptable time is now. Today is the day of salvation. The harvest does not tarry; the corn will not stand forever. It may rot in the place where it grows. How much of this teeming city, how many souls in the ends of the earth, may be destroyed for want of laborers to gather them in! The stagnation of the human mind is our worst foe, but when there is a stir among the people, when hearts are made tender by providences and the Spirit’s breath, then is the auspicious hour. Night cometh when no man can work; let us carry out the works of Him that sent us while it is day. If the Bible is worthy of our belief, proclaim it now; if souls are precious, snatch them now from the burning.
Yet the laborers must go forth in the power which the Holy Spirit alone can give. It is not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit, saith the Lord. We shall be witnesses only after the Holy Ghost has come upon us. Then shall we see the Word confirmed with signs following, and then shall the sower and the reaper rejoice together. The joy of harvest is what we have a right to expect. There is a recompense of reward for all the toil, for all the prayer, for all the weeping. The joy has respect to former labor, and it shall be a joy not to the laborers only, but to the whole Church, and indeed to all heaven, when the lost are found and the perishing are brought home. Let us not be content with the blade and the ear; let us travail in birth until Christ be formed in the hearers, and the wheat becomes mellowed and ripe for the heavenly garner.
As for the practical needs you name, the passports, the provision, the protection, these all lie within the Father’s care. Did not the Master teach us to pray for daily bread? And did He not promise that all these things shall be added unto us when we seek first the kingdom? The Lord’s hand is not shortened; He that feedeth the ravens will surely supply bread to those who go forth for His name’s sake. But with these petitions, mingle the weightier plea: that love may fill our hearts, that unity may bind families and teams together, that our consciences be kept undefiled, and that the heavens be opened over us. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much, and when a church wrestles thus, the blessing comes like the early and latter rain.
Stand, then, with your loins girt, your lamps burning, and your eye fixed upon the cloud whence the Lord of the harvest shall appear. He shall thrust in His sickle, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And until that day, pray without ceasing: Lord, send forth laborers! And when the Master puts the question, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” be ready to answer with heart and lips, Here am I; send me. So shall you share in the harvest joy, and when the Chief Shepherd shall appear, you shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen.