“The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."
(Matthew 9:37-38 TNIV)
I have a heart for revival. At certain points in my faith journey, I have paused to identify the deepest call of my heart, among the vying passions we each possess. A course I took a decade ago sifted through those passions and concluded that the biggest call of my soul was revival. It was an unsurprising conclusion.
Perhaps because I am British of Commonwealth extraction, the stories of faithful British missionaries resonates deep within me. I know that their faith changed the destiny of my family lineage, and I have held within me an innate desire to see the United Kingdom restored to that great missionary nation again, a nation that seeks the Lord within its own borders and takes that power to the ends of the earth. This call has shaped my prayer life for decades. Although I can pinpoint particular moments where that call has rung loud – praying over UK General Elections, leading prayer groups during our Diamond Jubilee and Olympic year for instance – I also know it is a recurring theme. If I am honest, it is in seasons when I am closest to the Lord, that my heart burns for revival.
The most seminal moment occurred one autumn day in 2004, when my mother and I stumbled upon John Wesley’s house in the City of London. When we entered the bedroom, we saw a small ante chamber, where early each morning Wesley arose to pray for Britain and for revival. Those prayers changed not only the future of Great Britain, but also, due to its burgeoning empire, vast parts of the world. One man’s prayers.
That discovery became a cornerstone. If Wesley, then why not me? Or you? The Bible tells us in James 5 that Elijah “was a human being, even as we are. He prayed earnestly that it would not rain and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years” (TNIV). In 2 Chronicles 7:14, the Lord says: “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land” (ESV).
Those verses are often quoted, but what if we actually applied them? For when we do, things happen. When we do, regardless of world events, we know unflinchingly that God is on His throne. That He is not deaf or blind. That He will not be mocked. And so our faith rises and we pray more.
As my earlier posts express, the Lord has given me a burden for Australia. In the closing weeks of my recent Australian stay, I had a sense of the work he had sent me to do completing, but I sought him for what remained. As I did so, my heart yearned to pass on the flame of revival before I left. The Lord answered. In the remaining weeks, he opened the platform several times for me to share with my Sydney church that he wanted Australian Christians to catch the flame of revival and partner with his kingdom plans. As I sought his guidance about bringing this word, I heard him whisper “heart for the harvest”. It was his green light.
Jesus wants us to cultivate a heart for the harvest. In the Gospels, He asks his disciples to pray for workers for the harvest field (Matthew 9:38). In John 4, Jesus urges: “open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” (TNIV). He urges us still.
Copyright © Sharmila Meadows January 2021
Scripture quotations are from The ESV®Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, TODAY’S NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 2004 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Publishers, a division of Hodder Headline ltd. All rights reserved. “TNIV” is a registered trademark of International Bible Society.
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