Discipleship begins with prayer. Jesus makes this clear in Matthew 9:35-38: “Then Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom, and healing every sickness and every disease among the people. 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 laborers are few. Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.'”

Let us hear and heed the word of Jesus again as recorded by the apostle John: “Do you not say, ‘There are still four months and then comes the harvest’? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! And he who reaps receives wages, and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true: ‘One sows and another reaps.’ I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored; others have labored, and you have entered into their labors” (John 4:35-38).

My brothers and sisters, the time of harvest is NOW. The harvest is ripe. The harvest cannot wait. When the harvest is ripe it cannot wait. Will you be one of the harvesters?

Read more on this through Dr. Thomas’ new book, Demystifying Discipleship: A Fresh Look at the Great Commission, an inspirational and practical tool to enhance the task of making disciples of Jesus Christ among individual believers, churches, and para-church ministries.

“It is my prayer that all who use this material will develop a passion for discipleship that is contagious, somewhat like COVID-19, except that it will bring new life instead of death. Please join me in prayer that the Lord will raise up many to bring in the harvest for ‘the harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.'”

Written by Dr. Raphael J. Thomas