Yesterday's PAYG centred on some words of Jesus including the famous saying “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” (Matt 9:37-38).
This little saying has puzzled me on and off for as long as I've known of it - rather than getting on and doing the work themselves, the disciples are to pray for other people to do the work. That, in and of itself is fine. The disciples already have a task to do, as they learn from Jesus. It is also fine in so far as it is far too great a task (even within the relatively tiny confines of first century Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, never mind the 'rest of the world'). Where it is not fine, and never has been, at least in my opinion, is when it becomes a formulaic response to every issue, ill or opportunity... 'please God will you raise up people with gift/skill X to do job Y...' which can leave me/us feeling very self-righteous whilst actually doing nothing. It's the old 'here I am, Lord, send her'.
In my late teens we used to sing this worship song with all earnest zeal of youth, whilst secretly hoping God would pick someone else to be the answer to our prayers:
Here I am, wholly available;
As for me, I will serve the Lord.
Here I am, wholly available;
As for me, I will serve the Lord.
The fields are white unto harvest,
But O, the labourers are so few;
So Lord, I give myself to help the reaping,
To gather precious souls unto You.
The time is right in the nation
For works of power and authority;
God’s looking for a people who are willing
To be counted in His glorious victory.
As salt are we ready to savour?
In darkness are we ready to be light?
God’s seeking out a very special people
To manifest His truth and His might.
Chris Bowater (c) Sovereign Lifestyle Music
To pray the Lord of the harvest to send more labourers, more missionaries, more evangelists, more aid workers, more "Christian teachers/police officers/lawyers/engineers/doctors" is a cop out, a biblically legitimated cop out, but a cop out nonetheless. To pray, as we once sang 'here I am Lord, wholly available..." is theologically risky, because God might just say 'great, OK then...'
I wonder, do we take the holy cop out, or do we pray the risky prayer? God is seeking a very special people, willing to manifest (i.e. incarnate) truth and light... Whom shall God send, and who will go...?