The Resources Are In The “Harvest”

And he said, “The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear.  But when the grain is ripe, at once he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.” - Mark 4:26-29

Raising Leaders From Dirt

When new missionaries are sent to their fields, the question of “Where do I get more leaders?” often comes up. Veteran missionaries know the answer - “The resources are in the harvest.” We know from Jesus’ parables that the “harvest” refers to people who are being reached in the “field” (Matthew 9:37, John 4:35).

Just as the earth produces crops “all by itself,” leadership farms produce new leaders seemingly effortlessly. However, let’s not forget the plowing, sowing, watering, cultivating, and harvesting, which does not happen “all by itself.” While, we can’t produce leaders all by ourselves, we can, with God’s help, do the farming, which grows the leaders. So, what does a church leadership farm look like?

In a nutshell, it is hot, sweaty, messy work. When it is done well, it produces more leaders than we need. The New Testament model is of churches who produce leaders in such abundance that they have plenty to share. In fact, in order for some of these leaders to reach their full potential - they have to be sent out to serve as missionaries, church revitalizers and church planters. Come and find out more at our next Lunch and Learn on November 5th. Click here for details..