Harvest

I'll admit it. While I'd like to be a country girl, I can't shake the city girl from me. When we first moved to our home twenty-some years ago, my city girl rationale thought that farmers planted sweet corn on the acres and acres of fields nearby. Oops. In my defense, the only corn I encountered as a girl was sweet corn. On the cob. That I ate. My husband still laughs at my lack of knowledge regarding field corn.

During all the years we've lived in this neck of the woods, I've enjoyed watching the growing season progress. Late spring finds the farmers hard at work, preparing the fields for planting. As summer settles in, the adage, "knee-high by the Fourth of July," is more like, "waist-high by the Fourth of July." By August, the corn on either side of Van Buren Street is so tall, it forms a wall of green, towering high above my car.

Come October, it's harvest time. The lush green stalks have turned a sandy hue and the towering wall is destined for the combine. Rows and rows of corn stand at attention. Waiting.

Jesus talks about a harvest in Matthew 9, where he tasks the disciples with praying for harvest workers:

35 Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. 36 When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. 37 Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. 38 Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

We are tasked to join the workers in the Lord's harvest field. The mission field is in my backyard; in your backyard. As I ponder the Scriptures, I realize that Jesus took every moment, every encounter, every situation to share the news of God's kingdom.

So my prayer in this time of harvest will be:

Today, Lord, help me share the news of your kingdom in the ordinary encounters of my life. Nudge me and raise my awareness to those in need around me. Help me make the small things matter. The fields are ripe. Help me spring into action for you.