Monthly Prayer: October

“The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few”
- Matthew 9:37

Jesus urged his disciples to pray that the Lord God would send labourers for the harvest which was, and still is, so vast.

What did Jesus mean? Jesus had just spent many days healing people prior to this conversation with the disciples and he recognised the deep needs of the people he encountered. Jesus healed peoples’ physical and mental needs.

In verse 36 of the same chapter, the Bible tells us:

"When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd."

It is difficult, maybe even impossible for most, to comprehend the physical, emotional and spiritual trauma of the genocide in Rwanda in the mid-1990s. It has left deep wounds and scars that still continue to this day.

SCIAF have been working with partners in Rwanda since 1994. Working to help families grow more food and set up small businesses, access water and adapt to climate change. We provide trauma counselling and legal aid for women who have suffered sexual and gender-based violence. All of this under the dark cloud of the recent genocide.

Progress has been made and the harvest is still plentiful. We still need to show compassion as Jesus did, and support families in the right way, upholding their dignity.

I’m sure Jesus, in this situation, would urge his followers to pray.