Dear Hope family,

Thought for the Week

To Reap the Harvest: Person of Peace!

Matthew 10v11 “Whatever town or village you enter, search for some worthy person there.” 

As Jesus sends out the 12 on a mission (and later the 72 in Luke 10), he must have either had in mind a strategy to knock doors or to talk to people in the market square.  Whichever it was, they were to search for someone who would welcome their message. In Luke’s gospel they are described as a “person of peace”.

The simple reality is that the harvest is huge. There is little point in using all our time on someone who does not want to know about the gospel. However, we are only going to find out who is open by asking people and evaluating their response. So let’s be strategic: when someone is interested, invest some time with them; and if someone is not, move on to find someone who is and maybe come back later. This is a loving approach, and also an approach that is seeing where God is working and joining in.

This strategy is common throughout the New Testament. Paul frequently spoke to those closest to him first (the Jews in any town), and when they rejected him he turned to the Gentiles in that town. When Jesus told the story of the lost sheep, he spent time searching for that sheep and brought that one back, ignoring all the others for a time. So, let’s scatter seed wide, and then concentrate on where the shoots are coming up.

May God give us wisdom to understand where people are at and sow seed accordingly.

With love and blessing,

Roland