We Face a Plentiful Harvest

Jesus declared to His disciples: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few” (Matthew 9:37). He urges them to “therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest” (Matthew 9:38, emphasis added). As His disciples in the 21st century, we are witnessing a bountiful harvest, but we need the workers who will faithfully bring it in. How do we raise up these workers? According to Jesus, we pray.

On Sunday, October 7, we invite EFCA churches from all across our movement to join together in prayer for the raising up of laborers. On this Church Multiplication Sunday, it matters greatly that we unite in prayer and worship.

The first church planters in the book of Acts were sent out as a result of the early church joining together in prayer and worship. It is exciting to think about all the people we may be blessed to lay hands on and send out as the result of our coming together in prayer. Will you and your church join together with churches around the country and the world at this critical moment?

To reach our world for Christ, we need all kinds of church-planting laborers, including planting pastors, intercessors, core team members, visionary givers, assessment team members and many more. Church multiplication is a kingdom effort that requires all of us to join together. What unites us as a movement is a shared set of theological convictions around the following mission statement: The EFCA exists to glorify God by multiplying transformational churches among all people.

Will you pray with us on October 7?

Prayer requests

• Please pray for the Lord to raise up a new generation of leaders who would champion the cause of planting new disciplemaking churches throughout our nation and world.
• Pray for the national team of leaders working to develop systems and resources for planting. Pray that those systems and resources would fuel a culture of multiplication that would not only resource new church plants, but create a culture of multiplying disciples and leaders in all churches.
• Pray that we would see a growing movement of ethnic and multi-ethnic congregations planted in response to the rapidly changing demographics in our country and out of obedience to our mission to make disciples of every tribe tongue and nation.
• Pray that God would raise up workers as we make disciples who make disciples.
• Pray for workers who would be sent out into the harvest as church planters, core team members, prayer warriors and financial supporters.
• Pray for the creation of a church residency team, a process that requires the focus of multiple churches within the district working together.
• Pray for eight church planting residents for eight different churches who will plan, prepare and plant eight new churches in eight target communities.
• Pray for the needs of your district by finding region-specific prayers on the Church Multiplication Sunday resources page.

We are also encouraging pastors to invite their congregations to keep praying for God to raise up laborers by setting their phone alarms daily for 9:38 a.m. (in reference to the passage in Matthew) for the week following Church Multiplication Sunday as a reminder. We’ll also launch a monthly church multiplication prayer email and invite people to join us in prayer, so subscribe to receive periodic updates.

The EFCA Church Multiplication Team has assembled resources to help you create a successful Church Multiplication Sunday at your own church. Find a video to share, prayer requests from your local district to guide your prayer time, a bulletin insert and sermon notes.

We look forward to joining together in prayer to the Lord of the harvest, seeking His guidance for the making of disciples and the planting of churches throughout our nation and around the world.