The great MD
But when He saw the multitudes, He was moved with compassion for them, because they were weary and scattered, like sheep having no shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, “The harvest truly is plentiful, but the labourers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:36-38).
A brother had a hardware shop in the north of England, and salespeople would visit his shop to sell the latest products. One of these visitors would always ask the brother how his business was doing. He would say the company was doing well, because he had a great MD (Managing Director). After a few visits, the man said to the brother, “I always thought the business was yours; who is your MD?” The brother explained that he was a Christian, and he trusted the Lord for everything, including his business. This conversation was the start of many spiritual conversations with the salesperson. One day the man came to the brother’s shop and explained that a friend of his was dying of cancer and asked if the brother would visit his sick friend. He readily agreed. When the brother arrived at the house, the man’s wife explained that he was very poorly and so the visit would have to be short. The brother shared his faith with the dying man. Towards the end of the conversation, the man wanted to pray to the Lord for salvation. The brother described, in a simple way, how to pray to the Lord. At that moment the man’s wife appeared. The brother knew he would have to leave: then the lady said, “I want to pray that prayer as well.” And that afternoon the husband and his wife came to the Lord.
This all happened because a Christian made the opportunity to witness for the Lord in his everyday life. He didn’t preach or give literature out; he simply brought the Lord into his conversation in a way which aroused the interest and attention of the people he met. The Lord did the same at Sychar’s well when he said to the woman, “Give me a drink.” From that simple request, the Lord began a conversation which led her in all her need to the Lord, and then she led others to Christ. A few verses later, Jesus said to His disciples, “I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest!” (John 4:35).
We live in difficult times, and there is resistance to the Gospel. But the Lord lived in a spiritually bankrupt nation, riddled with hypocrisy and corruption, and occupied by foreign forces. Yet He said the fields were white to harvest. When He saw people in all their need, compassion filled His heart, and He wanted His disciples to respond in the same way. I have to ask myself, Am I in tune with the heart of the Lord when it comes to making opportunities to share His love? Sometimes we are fearful of people’s reactions to our faith in Christ. Still, I have discovered over the years, especially with people at work, that those who can be the most antagonistic towards our faith in Christ are those who, in quieter moments, are prepared to listen.
Crisis creates concern. We are living in a worried world. An earthquake caused the Philippian jailer to ask the question, “What must I do to be saved?” Perhaps the jailer’s question is in more hearts than we realise. Let us ask the Lord to give us the grace and wisdom to know how to witness to the Saviour’s love.
