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PRAYING FOR LABOURERS
Matthew 9:36-38
1999 Missions Conference
Saturday Night Service
February 13, 1999
How many would agree that there are multitudes out there in the world today?
How many would agree that the harvest truly is plenteous?
How many would agree that the labourers are few?
Notice Jesus presented the situation, “The harvest truly is plenteous.”
Then He told us the problem, “But the labourers are few.”
And then He told us the answer to the problem of a plenteous harvest and few labourers, “Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he will sent forth labourers into his harvest.”
We are to pray for labourers.
Jesus told us to pray for labourers.
What else are we told?
Eph. 6:4, “And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.”
So, we are to pray for labourers,
We are to bring up our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
What does the Lord want us to do? He wants us to pray for labourers.
Prov. 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.”
We are to pray for labourers,
We are to bring them up in the nurture and the admonition of the Lord,
He wants us to pray for labourers,
He wants us to train our children.
We are to train them in the way of the Lord and His nurture and admonition.
So, why shouldn’t we expect the labourers to come from our kids.
Several of our young people have heard the call of God on their lives.
How did that happen?
Someone was praying for labourers.
Now, it was probably some missionary somewhere.
It was probably some veteran missionary on his knees asking God to send more labourers into the harvest.
It was probably some preacher somewhere on his knees asking God to send more labourers into the harvest.
It was probably some grandmother somewhere, reading her Bible, praying, and asking God to send forth labourers into the harvest.
I would like to think it was some parent somewhere praying for their children and asking God to use them in His harvest field.
Someone is praying for labourers.
Someone is training those children,
Someone is training in the way of the Lord,
Someone is training in the nurture and admonition of the Lord,
AND IT ONLY MAKES SENSE THAT GOD IS GOING TO USE THEM TO ANSWER HIS CALL.
“Well, preacher, someone has to be the lawyers or doctors or nurses. Don’t you think we need Christians in those professions.”
Yes, I do.
But I am not told to pray for God to call our young people to be lawyers or doctors or nurses.
I AM TOLD TO PRAY FOR LABOURERS IN HIS HARVEST.
Why are we so scared for God to call our children?
Why aren’t more parents praying for God to call their children into His harvest?
I know that Jerry and Dana Jones prayed that God would call their sons into His harvest.
Mark Jones answered the call, and now God has called Mark and Michelle to Canada.
Daniel Jones answered the call, and now God has called Daniel and Lisa and Micah to the field of Mexico.
Some others have answered the call.
Jana Martin,
Ashlie Martin,
Mary Crisp,
Heather Lambert,
Matthew Lambert.
This young people have answered God’s call to go to a mission field.
This is a missions conference and I want to spend a few minutes to highlight these young people.
MATTHEW LAMBERT
Matthew Lambert was born on March 21, 1987. He was “born again” on January 12, 1997, at Fair Avenue Baptist Church.
In August of 1997, God spoke to Matthew’s heart about going to the mission field and Matthew believes God would have him go to Russia to preach the Gospel.
The burden was laid on his heart at his first missions conference in 1997. Matthew’s testimony is that “missionaries and mission conferences have affected my heart very much because the missionaries come and tell the hunger that the people have for the Gospel.”
If you are not specifically praying for Matthew Lambert, you need to do so. You need to pray that he will remain focused on God’s call and that the Devil will not be able to distract him from the will of God in his life.
HEATHER LAMBERT
Heather Lambert was born on May 12, 1985. She was born again on January 12, 1997, at the Fair Avenue Baptist Church.
On April 12, 1998, Heather walked this aisle and yielded her life to go to the mission field. God laid on her heart the need to go and tell the untold millions about Jesus.
Heather’s testimony is that missionaries have affected my heart in a big way.
Let me read you her testimony.
“Mrs. Suhl has really affected my heart. It was around the time that Bro. Suhl died and we went to a youth rally at South Ft. Worth Baptist Temple. They were talking abouthow there needed to be more people willing to fill those shoes. From then on I could not get it off my mind. But I thought, ‘No, not me.’ I was scared to think about going to another country. I thought God would change His mind. One thing I have learned is that when God calls you or someone else to do His will, He does not change His mind. I could not stop thinking about it and about a week later Donna Parker came to our church. After I saw the slides and how those people live, I knew I belonged on the mission field.”
I’m not sure that in the later part of 1996 when Tracie started coming to our church that she was praying that God would call her children to the mission field.
I’m not sure that after Brian got saved and the entire family got involved in the church that Brian and Tracie started praying for their children to be missionaries.
But, someone was praying for more labourers, and God answered that call.
MARY CRISP
Mary Crisp was born on November 8, 1982. She was “born again” on August 6, 1995, here at Fair Avenue Baptist Church.
At the 1996 Youth Conference in Oklahoma City she yielded her life to the mission field.
Mary Crisp came to us through some tragic circumstances. When she was just a little girl, in 1992, I believe, her daddy committed suicide. We met her and her brothers and sisters as a result of the funeral. They started riding our buses and her sister and two brothers have all been saved and baptized as a result of Fair Avenue Baptist Church.
She has been riding a bus since that time. We call her a “bus kid” and many, many prayers have gone up for her. Several times we thought we had lost her to the world. Several times she drifted and we thought she was gone.
God has called Mary to go to China. Her goal is to be there in ten years. She has a two years to go in High School, (or more), then four years (or more) in Bible College, and then two or three years on deputation to be able to go to China.
Let me read you a portion of her testimony.
“The missionaries and the missions conferences have really affected my heart by showing me that you will get to the mission field you are called to. And it does not matter if you are a bus kid and have no Christian parents, or if you have Christian parents. It also shows me that there are millions of people out there waiting to hear the Gospel of Jesus Christ. It also shows me that if I do not reach those people in China there might not be anyone who can or will.”
Are you praying specifically for Mary Crisp?
Are you praying for Matthew Lambert?
Are you praying for Heather Lambert?
WHY NOT?
ASHLIE MARTIN
Ashlie Martin was born February 21, 1985. She was “born again” on May 23, 1991, and made her profession of faith at Fair Avenue Baptist Church.
On November 28, 1993, she yielded her life to be a missionary.
“I had known previously that God had called me to be a missionary, but I was fighting it. I couldn’t think of leaving my mom for a longer time than a week, but that night God kept telling me to go down to the altar and pray, and sure enough, that night, I made a public profession that God had called me to be a missionary. Now that I am older I’m glad I didn’t fight it for any longer. Now, working on a bus, and going soul winning a lot more helps me to stay closer to Him, and never stray.”
I wonder how many other young people have fought the call of God on their lives?
I wonder how many other young people have fought the call of God because they are afraid to leave their mother?
I read on.
“Missionaries and mission conferences have affected my life by seeing them always happy even though they might be going through a trial. I can see these missionaries are real, they’re not fakes. I hear them presenting their field, and wishing they were there now. I can se that my preacher loves missions, and I want to love missions as much as he does.”
Mission Conferences will speak to young people’s heart. You’ve heard the testimonies. Missionaries will affect the hearts and lives of our young people.
“Preacher, why do you have so many missionaries here at our church? Why do you make the missions conference such a big deal?”
I think you are beginning to understand the answer to that question.
JANA MARTIN
Jana Martin was born on October 24, 1981. She was “born again” in 1989 and baptized in March of 1990.
On a Wednesday night, April 1, 1992, God called her to the mission field. Her testimony reads:
“I knew that God was calling me to missions when a missionary was at our church one Sunday night. He was telling us of his burden for the lost souls of his mission field. It was then that God got a hold of my heart. I went home and told my Mom of God’s calling. She instructed me to tell the Preacher and to make my decision public before the church on the following service. I am uncertain of where I will go, but I know that God will lead me to His perfect will for my life.”
Four out of five of these young people were called before their teenage years.
In fact, most of those who have made decisions for the Lord in the area of full-time Christian service have done so before the age of 13.
Their hearts are still tender and they are more apt to listen to the call of God.
I answered God’s call to preach when I was nine years old. Regretfully, I didn’t completely follow through with my decision until I was 18.
Let’s continue with Jana’s testimony:
“Missionaries and mission conferences play a big part in my life. Just when I get discouraged about how long it will be before I get to step on the mission field, God sends a missionary by our church to shart his burden for the lost. It uplifts me in that I realize that if I will just be patient for a little bit longer, time will pass and before I know it, I will be on deputation, just like that missionary. Mission conferences seem to plant my decision in my heart just a little bit deeper. They ‘lock-in’ my decision even tighter, that I may resist discouragement from the devil. KEEP THE CONFERENCES AND MISSIONARIES COMING!”
Jana, we will keep those missionaries coming.
And, something else, I am going to keep on praying to the Lord of the harvest that He will send forth labourers into His harvest.
Let me close with just a few observations.
Have you also noticed that missionaries and mission conferences have been the major influence in the lives of these young people?
If we would just stop and think and say to ourselves, “My $40 or $50 a month to missions has kept missionaries coming to our church. And the $75 or $100 or $200 I give for my Mission Conference team every year has made the mission conferences even better. And my giving has helped in the decision of the lives of these young people.”
Stop and think long-term with me for a moment. If you are giving to missions and give to your mission conference team, you are building an account in heaven one day. In 10 or 15 years, when these young people are on the mission field, your investment in missions will have been an important factor in their lives.
May I close by saying, “Thank You” for your missions giving and your giving to the mission conference teams. You will never regret it and these young people are testimony to that fact.
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