The Key to the Master’s orders - Chambers, Oswald

Pray ye therefore the lord of the harvest, that he will send forth labourers into his harvest. Matthew 9:38

The key to the missionary problem is in the hand of god, and that key is prayer, not work, that is, not work as the word is popularly understood to-day, because that may mean the evasion of concentration on god. The key to the missionary problem is not the key of common sense, nor the medical key, nor the key of civilisation or education or even evangelisation. The key is prayer. Pray ye therefore the lord of the har- vest. Naturally, prayer is not practical, it is absurd; we have to realise that prayer is stupid from the ordinary commonsense point of view. There are no nations in Jesus Christs outlook, but the world. How many of us pray without respect of persons, and with respect to only one person, jesus christ? He owns the harvest that is produced by distress and conviction of sin, and this is the harvest we have to pray that labourers may be thrust out to reap. We are taken up with active work while people all round are ripe to harvest, and we do not reap one of them, but waste our lords time in over-energised activities. Suppose the crisis comes in your fathers life, in your brothers life, are you there as a labourer to reap the harvest for Jesus Christ? Oh, but i have a special work to do. A christian is called to be Jesus Christs own, one who is not above his master, one who does not dictate to Jesus Christ what he intends to do. Our lord calls to no special work: he calls to himself. Pray ye therefore the lord of the harvest, and he will engineer circumstances and thrust you out.