Wake Up! (#339 of 365+)

“He who gathers crops in summer is a wise son, but he who sleeps during harvest is a disgraceful son” (Proverbs 10:5)

Yesterday I prayed that I wouldn’t become “too content or satisfied with the
status quo” when it comes to saving souls. So, after my husband and I fought with our son about something and I didn’t get near the quantity of sleep that I needed last night, today’s verse was very timely. Early this morning I thought: Lord, I’m so tired. Help me get up, get out there, and get to work. Although at first I was praying about my physical exhaustion and the need to be on time for an early meeting, I now realize I prayed what should be an every day kind of prayer. There’s always lots of kingdom work to be done but I’m often not very willing to do it.

“I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest” (John 4:35)

My mother tells me that my Korean grandmother—a landowner’s wife and the mother of several children—was a hard-working and focused young Christian. She would tirelessly work right along next to the field laborers during the harvest. It was a team effort and every able-bodied person was expected to contribute. If she happened to be pregnant and started having contractions she’d simply take a break, go off somewhere and give birth, clean up and swaddle the newborn, stick the baby in a sling close to her chest, and go right back to work. I know it sounds almost comical but it’s completely true. God blessed her with a quiet, peaceful spirit and a strong, healthy body.

Farmers and their families understand the urgency of harvest time. They know they can’t reschedule or postpone it because the opportunity is there only for a season and then it’s gone. The harvest takes precedence over everything else. It’s both the purpose of their lives and their most sober responsibility. They wouldn’t dare plan to have a wedding or to take a week off during that time. There will always be plenty of time for celebration and leisure after all the work is done.

“As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work” (John 9:4)

Lord, every day I encounter souls who don’t know you. It isn’t right for me to want to breeze past them and not get my hands dirty. Show me how to get more involved in what you’re doing. Give me the grace to do the work you’ve called me to do. Amen.