Reflections in Ordinary Time

Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time - June 12, 2005

Jesus saw the crowds, and he was moved with pity for them because they were distressed and weary, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, "The harvest is abundant, but laborers are scarce. Ask the Lord to send laborers for his harvest."

Matthew 9: 36-38

Laborers for the Harvest

As Jesus went around the towns of Galilee teaching and healing the sick and casting out demons, he was sometimes overwhelmed by the amount of work he had to do. Crowds gathered wherever he went, pushing and shoving to get near him and clamoring for his attention. At times they pressed in on him so much that he could hardly move. He could not even make himself heard above the noise. And no matter how many he attended to, the crowds just kept coming.

Jesus was moved with pity for the crowds because he did not see them as faceless masses of people, but as unique individuals each with a story to tell. Each one was a person with needs and wants who hoped that Jesus could help him. But so many came to him that he could not keep up with them. There just were not enough hours in the day to take care of all of them. It was too much work even for God.

Jesus knew that he would not be able to take care of everyone, so he recruited disciples to help him. First he instructed them about their mission. He spent months teaching them about his Father, about how deeply he loved his children and how much he wanted everyone to experience his mercy and compassion. He taught them that they were to be bearers of God's love just as he was. Then he sent them out to minister in his name.

The ministry of Jesus' disciples continues today. The crowds today are much like the crowds of Galilee. They are just as much in need of healing as the crowds in Jesus' day. They bring every sort of personal demon to be cast out. They come weary and distressed and confused. They come seeking the comforting assurance of God's love and mercy. And they come in such numbers that the work is still overwhelming. Where will we ever find enough laborers for this work?

The ministry of being a bearer of God's compassionate love is not a job like other jobs. It is not a professional ministry. No one is licensed or certified to do it. It does not require professional qualifications. No one does it for a living. The ministry of God's love is a one-on-one ministry. It requires personal involvement. It cannot be mass-produced or mass-marketed. It requires listening to another's personal story and affirming its truth and legitimacy. It requires patience and commitment and caring. Each one who undertakes it is sent to just a few - family members, neighbors, co-workers, friends. That is why so many laborers are needed.

The ministry of God's love is the calling of everyone who has experienced the tender mercy of the Father, who has felt the healing touch of Jesus' hand, who has been consoled and strengthened by the abiding Spirit of God. It is your ministry and mine. We are the laborers sent to gather in the Lord's abundant harvest.

O God, Who wills not the death of a sinner, but rather that he be converted and live, grant an increase of laborers for Your Church, fellow laborers with Christ to spend and consume themselves for souls, through the same Jesus Christ, your Son, Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.

- from the Serran Prayer for Vocations

Love is a commitment to leave no one behind on the journey to God. Read another reflection.