Ripe Harvest

I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for a harvest. Even now the one who reaps draws a wage and harvests a crop for eternal life. . . (John 4:35-36)

Once I asked a class if they believed that the “fields” are still “ripe unto harvest.” I was surprised that the answer was mixed. No one felt sure that it was either way, and several felt that the Gospel had been preached for so long and in so many places that the fields might actually be shrinking. I was disappointed because I was convinced that Jesus’ words are even more urgent today. The whiteness of the fields was a statement and an assurance to the disciples that even in Samaria, where they were resting, hearts and minds were ready to receive the the Word of God. If that were somehow no longer true,we would all be in despair when we looked at “the fields.”

Soon after this discussion Jack and I visited Caprock Canyon with some friends. As we drove to the canyon we passed a large cotton field that looked withered and dead as the result of a drought. I felt a regret for the farmer and for the potential that such a large field had held.

We stayed in the canyon all day and in the late afternoon headed home. The sun was still bright as we passed the cotton field and I could hardly believe my eyes. I asked, “Is this the same way we came this morning?” “Yes,” our friend , who was driving answered, “why?” I said, “Look at that field!” In that one day the cotton had burst open . I stared and stared, and the others in the truck were amazed, too. “Are you sure this is the same field?” I asked. “Yes, yes. It’s just that the cotton has bloomed in the one day, and what a sight!” said our friend.

For me it was more than just “a sight.” I couldn’t help thinking that my earlier disappointment had been healed. I believed with all my heart that the fields are really, truly, ready for harvest, and that they have been ready for more than two thousand years, and even in that time some “reapers” have known it and have reaped a harvest and a crop for eternal life. Thanksgiving is a time for reaping friendships and relationships, and for celebrating the harvest of souls who acknowledge Christ’s offer of eternal life. I will never forget the sight of a cotton field almost blindingly white in the sun, so very ready for harvest.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Love in Him,

Prue