Lord of the Harvest: Part V

March 22, 2024 Steve B

And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, 'The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.'”  [Matthew 9:35-38 ESV]
 
Lord and Master of the Harvest,

Help me to pray specifically, as I earnestly seek you to set my pastor’s heart on the Harvest! I understand there are many demands upon the time and attention of my pastor. Many of those demands are from the congregation for the pastor to do more for them with no view to the readiness and needs of the Harvest.

Move my pastor to embrace your priority for the Harvest. May he see the authority with which you gave the redemptive mandate. May he shape his heart to be in line with your heart for the nations. May he align the priority of the Harvest in the vision and philosophy of ministry in our church.
 
Move my pastor to earnestly pray to the Lord of the Harvest. May his time in the closet of prayer fuel his soul to bring passion to his public prayers for the unreached and unengaged of the nations. May his frequent prayers for laborers land in the hearts of specific laborers in our church.

Move my pastor to earnestly proclaim the need of the Harvest. May he see the needs of the Harvest as greater than the wants of our church. May he set the priority of the Harvest in our lives through the proclamation of the Word. May he set the need of the Harvest as the tenor of his submission to Christ in all our ministries and among our leaders and people.

Move my pastor to earnestly prepare laborers for the Harvest. May he identify and invest in our own members to equip and train for missionary service. May he strategically prepare and participate in mission trips to encourage our missionaries and expose potential laborers to life on the mission field with a view to God’s work in the world.

Move my pastor to earnestly provide for laborers in the Harvest. May he demonstrate great faith and generosity in the support of our missionaries. May he lead by example and encourage our leaders and people to follow him in generous giving and sacrificial living for the benefit of the Harvest and the glory of God.

Lord and Master of the Harvest, lead us through our pastor!

Amen.
Read other articles in this series: Lord of the Harvest
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. IV
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. IV
Jan 19, 2024 3 min · Steve B "And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he… Read More
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. III
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. III
Nov 17, 2023 2 min · Steve B "And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he… Read More
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. II
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. II
Sep 15, 2023 2 min · Steve B “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he… Read More
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. I
Lord of the Harvest, Pt. I
Aug 18, 2023 1 min · Steve B “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he… Read More

Author

Steve B
Steve served as a church planter, pastor, leadership developer, missions trainer, and in missions leadership over the 37 years prior to stepping into the leadership of MɪssɪᴏSERVE Alliance. Steve is married to Terri Jo and they have four adult children and 13 grandchildren.