Pray to the Lord of the Harvest

As Christians, we have an enormous privilege to share the Gospel, or “Good News”, of Jesus with others.  This is the incredible Gospel:  He has forgiven us through His sacrifice on the cross; defeated death by rising again; redeemed our bodies and ascended to heaven. We can experience His presence and love now, and for eternity.  What an incredible message!

It’s not an easy task, however, to communicate this message to others.  It takes intentionality, time, energy, resources, creativity, and courage.  Therefore we must pray.

Jesus taught the disciples to pray for others to join them in the great work of proclaiming God’s Kingdom:

Luke 10:2: “And he said to them, ‘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.’”

One of the most common personal prayer requests of the Apostles was they would have boldness and clarity when preaching the Gospel.  Paul asked his message would have an open door and clarity:

Colossians 4:3-4 : “And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ… Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should.”

Paul also asked for prayer that he would be fearless: 

Ephesians 6:19-20 : “Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.”

Believers prayed in once voice to speak about the healing power of God to the city of Jerusalem.

Acts 4:29: “...Enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness…”

If the Apostles and disciples were praying this prayer, I think we should add this to our daily prayer for each other as well. Would you pray for boldness for others and yourself, as you talk about and live for Jesus?  Would you pray for some of the activities Mariners’ Church is doing in the Harvest field?  Would you pray for courage in preaching the Gospel, loving others, and serving our community? 

Here are some of those opportunities.  If you want to join us please respond to this email and let me know!

The Common Table 

This Sunday we will be stepping out or our building and setting up tables to share time and food and conversation with anyone who would come.  Tourist, church members, conference attendees, or those who don’t have a home, are all invited.  We will be gathering just outside the bell tower.  Here are some of the details:

Maritime Ministry

We are entering into the Shipping season and we are planning upcoming visits to ports, ships, and other services for those sailors who live most of the year at sea.  Please pray whether you could be involved in serving these sailors or supplying gift bags, helping with a Christmas Party, collecting and handing out necessary items they may need like personal supplies and snacks (more details to come).  While we love them in this way, we also share the love Christ has for them.

Continue to pray for these sailors that they would be safe and lean on God as they travel, often in dangerous areas of the World.  Just this past Sunday we welcomed back to Mariners Church our friend and sailor, Evan.  We have been praying for him as he was on an oil vessel, The Torm Thunder, stuck outside the Straights of Hormuz. Here is that past email (https://marinerschurchofdetroit.org/blog/shipping-danger-in-middle-east-is-a-crisis-for-a-friend-and-crew/).   

Evan is safe and came to worship with us on Sunday (on his motorcycle!), coming all the way from his home in North Carolina. He was so grateful for the prayers and ready to head back out on the Torn Thunder, or an asian shipping route, this summer.  Thanks for praying for his safety, and continue to pray as Evan lives for Jesus on a ship with other men and women.   Thank you for praying for all the sailors coming through our ports and around the world. 

Please continue to praying to the Lord of the Harvest that workers would be sent into the Harvest field.  Maybe as you pray you will discover you are the one who will be sent!

Blessings and peace,

Rev. Todd