Praying in the Harvest

Praying in the Harvest

By The Rev. Tim Howe, Executive Assistant to the Canon for Church Planting

In Luke 10:2, Jesus tells His disciples: “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.”

This verse has been one of the key components of the work of the Great Commission Committee from its inception in the early days of the Diocese of the MId-Atlantic.  The Committee is charged with supporting our congregations in the work of evangelism, discipleship, church planting, and congregational health and well-being.  It is a broad mandate that requires the input and work of a large number of volunteers from all across the diocese.

 At the heart of the Committee’s work lies this word from Jesus, to pray in the laborers to gather the harvest.  

Seven years ago, Bishop Guernsey asked me to develop an intercessory prayer ministry to cover the work of the Great Commission Committee, including this mandate from Jesus to pray in new laborers to gather the harvest. We had two mini-conferences on intercessory prayer very early on in this process from which we got a committed core of intercessors to get the ministry launched and running. Many of them are still praying with us to this day.

One of our goals has been to help provide intercessory prayer cover for our church planters who are already “out in the field,” as well as praying in new planters for the Diocese. So, as churches are planted, we develop an ongoing prayer relationship with the planters and the churches, praying for each one on a regular basis.

We currently have about 140 folks receiving the bi-weekly email prayer requests.  These folks are divided up into four teams so that we can get all of our church planters prayed for at least once a month and we can pray for new laborers to come and plant in the areas of the Diocese where we lack a church. 

Our goal is to pray in laborers who have a heart for the lost and who will succeed as church planters, establishing viable congregations for the long term.

In one sense, the ministry of intercessory prayer is very much a “behind the scenes” type of ministry.  You don’t always see the folks who are praying, but you can often tell when they are.  God’s hand becomes evident when people are lifting the effort to the throne of grace on a regular basis.  

We have seen a number of answers to our prayers.

We have prayed for Columbia, Maryland since we began.  Now, Trinity Anglican Fellowship, under the leadership of Galen Carey, is meeting regularly in Columbia.

We prayed for the Lord to launch a work in the panhandle of West Virginia for quite some time.  Now, in answer to those prayers, the Rev. Darryl Fitzwater and his crew have planted the Church of the Ascension in Kearneysville, WV. God heard our prayers, prepared Darryl and his wife Becki, and the church is growing. We continue to pray for Church of the Ascension now as one of the Diocese’s Mission Churches. 

At Diocesan Synod, 2019, Incarnation Anglican Church, Arlington, was admitted as a new, full congregation of the Diocese. During the proceedings at Synod, the Rev. Liz Gray, rector of the church, asked everyone to stand up who had supported their effort through prayer. Scores of people stood up all across the room. Many of them were our intercessors who have been praying regularly for Liz and the new church. 

These are just a small sample of God at work through our intercessions.

One of the things we have seen is that the work of intercession for these efforts is a vital, if unseen, component of the success of our church planters. By interceding, we help clear the way for God to work in and through our church planters to reach new communities with the vital message of Christ’s gospel. 

And, by praying in obedience to Jesus’ words in Luke 10:2, we have seen Him raise up new laborers and the resources they need to become successful church planters.

If you might be interested in joining us in this effort, please contact me at the email address I use to administer this prayer program: domaprays@gmail.com. I would love to hear from you and have you join us as we pray down God’s blessings on His church and pray in the laborers needed to gather in the harvest all over the Diocese.