Lord of the Harvest

“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 9:37-38

I am celebrating a friend's wedding today in Delaware. We are stating in a hotel in Middletown where I served as Rector. When we moved here in 1996, it was a farming community and life revolved around planting and harvest. There were no motels in town let alone any fast food places nor anywhere to buy underwear. There were several feed and seed places and a few restaurants where local people gathered. Now here we are during harvest season and the main roads in town now sport every chain restaurant and store along with a Walmart. We drove back roads last night and saw farming life continuing, and we also stopped in Walmart for missing sundries. I had to wonder where the local people gather now. My time here was a time of growth and expansion and the congregation I served grew and blossomed in that time.

Today we here Jesus invite his disciples to serve God, sending them out with power and humility. They knew who was the Lord of the harvest, they knew that God was supplying and they were reaping for God. It was a harvest, not in a competitive market, but a harvest of healing and restoration. All harvests are a gift from God. No matter how good we are at farming, buying and selling or preaching and teaching, what we are able to accomplish is truly a gift from God. Driving down the main road last night I was wondering about which of all these new stores and things were really a gift from God, places that would build people up and restore their lives.
I don't have an answer - I just wonder.

Today, as we participate with friends and strangers in this wedding, I want to remember that this occasion is a gift from God, an opportunity to know God's blessings in the flesh. It is an opportunity to proclaim God's goodness and love. It is a time of harvest. In this season of harvest, I pray that all of us remember that all we have and all we can do are gifts from God. We are blessed by the Lord of the harvest. May we have the courage to spread the blessing around.