The Cry of the Harvest
David Myers Preached on 10/18/2026
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48:10
Summary
Pastor David Myers calls the church to a season of spiritual travail, likening the work of the harvest to the intensity and eventual joy of childbirth, urging believers to become fellow laborers through earnest intercession.
Key points
- •Labor for the harvest is not just manual or physical work; it is best understood through the typology of spiritual travail and childbirth.
- •A spiritual laborer must first be born through travail, recognizing that discipleship and soul winning are often long processes rather than instant events.
- •The intensity of spiritual labor and the pain of intercession are ultimately eclipsed by the overwhelming joy of seeing a soul born into the Kingdom of God.
- •Prayer is the primary form of intercessory labor that 'thrusts' workers into the field; it is not a preliminary step but the work itself.
Scripture
Spiritual Growth
Prayer
Evangelism
Community
Purpose
Life application
Commit to the '8 Days of Harvest' by using the provided prayer guide to intercede daily for the community and specifically for one unsaved loved one, asking God for a spirit of travail.
Reflection questions
- Who in your life 'travailed' in prayer for your salvation, and how can you honor that investment today?
- Are you currently viewing soul winning as a quick transaction or a patient, birth-like process?
- What specific 'cravings' or internal changes is the Holy Spirit producing in you to prepare you for a new spiritual season?
- How can you better support your 'fellow laborers' in the ministry to ensure no one is laboring alone?
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Full transcript
0:00>> Oh, would you lift your hands right now?
0:02Would you surrender your praise unto
0:04him?
0:06Oh, Lord, WE'VE COME INTO YOUR HOUSE TO
0:08BLESS YOUR NAME TODAY.
0:10WE LIFT YOU UP. HALLELUJAH.
0:13WE SURRENDER EVERYTHING UNTO YOU, LORD.
0:17YOU ARE WORTHY TO BE PRAISED.
0:20HALLELUJAH. HALLELUJAH. HALLELUJAH.
0:24OH, aren't you thankful you can feel the
0:26presence of the Lord here?
0:29Amen. Thank you, worship team, for
0:32leading us into the
0:34throne room
0:36of grace. You know, praise is what
0:37allows you to get into the presence of
0:39God.
0:41And uh we are so blessed here at
0:43Eastwind. We are grateful for
0:46our praise and worship team and grateful
0:47for all of you that are here today, but
0:49most of all, we're thankful that the
0:50Lord is in this place.
0:53And where the spirit of the Lord is,
0:55there is liberty.
0:57Hallelujah.
0:59God is so good.
1:01Uh we're excited that uh Brother Brian
1:03Pound is is uh very close to releasing
1:06his very first musical project. And uh
1:09while
1:10we were um
1:12Yeah, it's exciting.
1:14>> [applause]
1:16>> While we were in uh Taiwan and Hong Kong
1:18this past week and uh brother uh Pound
1:21sent me a a release that hasn't gone
1:23public yet. When it does, we're going to
1:25actually have a big release party here
1:27at the church and we're going to have a
1:28big concert.
1:29And uh it's going to be uh
1:32not very far away.
1:34And um
1:35I listened to it and it is fantastic.
1:39I'm telling you it's so exciting. And uh
1:41you're going to be blessed by this and
1:42I'm so grateful that Eastwind was able
1:45to partner uh with him and his family in
1:47the release of this project and I know
1:49that it's going to be a great blessing.
1:50Aren't you thankful for brother Brian
1:52Pound and
1:53his ministry of music?
1:55He's a great blessing to this church.
1:59And uh I hope you uh were able to get
2:01one of the bookmarks. If you haven't, um
2:03then uh we're going to have some here
2:05around the altar after service as we go
2:08into uh 8 days of harvest. Uh this year
2:12Winds conference is different. We're
2:13doing an outpouring
2:15>> [music]
2:15>> as well. We're wanting to reach our
2:17community and not just the body of
2:19Christ nationwide. So, though we do have
2:22hundreds of people coming from around
2:23the country, we are excited for the
2:25opportunity to have a crusade and to
2:28reach our community. So, thank you for
2:31all of you that are passing out door
2:32hangers and yard signs and we are
2:34advertising on social media. And in
2:37addition to the events that were
2:38advertised here this morning, uh on the
2:41same day that we're having this block
2:42party at Fred Lee Park, which will be
2:44Saturday, October 31st.
2:48Oh, yes. October 31st.
2:51You want to talk about ghosts? We're
2:53going to talk about the Holy Ghost.
2:56You going to get the Holy Ghost this
2:57October 31st.
3:00We're going to have a crusade service
3:02here at the church that night. We're
3:03going to have a block party during the
3:04day, but in addition to that, brother
3:05Braden Anderson uh is coming with the
3:07Jesus Tent Revival team and they are
3:09going want doing a Be Baptized event uh
3:12at Spencer Hall and Park on that
3:14Saturday in the ocean. We're believing
3:16that a hundred people will be baptized
3:18in Jesus name in the ocean. Amen.
3:22So it's going to be a great week.
3:24And of course we know that all these
3:26exciting events require us to lay a
3:28spiritual foundation. So that's what I
3:31want to talk to you about today as I
3:32turn your attention to the book of
3:34Matthew chapter 9 and we begin reading
3:37in verse 36. Matthew chapter 9 and verse
3:4136. Thank you for all of your prayers
3:44for my son and I as we traveled to
3:48Taiwan for their national conference and
3:50the Lord blessed in such a powerful way.
3:53A lot of it we're not able to put out on
3:56social media because of the
3:59missionaries that are there. They go
4:00into access challenge nations and for
4:02their security, but it is an amazing
4:05thing what God is doing in the country
4:07of Taiwan and in Hong Kong. God is is
4:11just shedding light. You know, they sing
4:14that song about the light and coming in
4:16and challenging the darkness and that's
4:18what you see around the world. You see
4:19that there is light and it's the light
4:22of God's love that's changing the world
4:25in every nation and every nationality.
4:27So we're grateful for what God is doing
4:29and thank you for your prayers. Matthew
4:31chapter 9 and verse 36, but when he
4:34referring to Jesus saw the multitudes,
4:36he was moved with compassion on them
4:38because they fainted
4:40and were scattered abroad as sheep
4:42having no shepherd.
4:43Then sayeth he unto his disciples, the
4:45harvest
4:46truly is plenteous,
4:50but the laborers are few.
4:52Pray ye therefore the Lord of the
4:55harvest that he will send forth laborers
4:58into
5:00his harvest. I want to speak this
5:02morning for just a few moments in your
5:03hearing on this subject, the cry
5:07of the harvest. The cry of the harvest.
5:09And you may be seated. Thank you
5:11uh so much for standing. When Jesus
5:14spoke of of laborers
5:16uh that were needed to go into the
5:17field, the immediate uh connotation is
5:20that this labor is manual labor.
5:24But even that term, manual labor, is a
5:28bit of a misnomer because it associates
5:30labor with the work of a man or of a
5:33male. Sometimes this concept is even
5:36given a broader interpretation by by
5:38changing the descriptive adjective to
5:41physical labor. But even that term is is
5:44more associated with a gender-specific
5:47task. That type of classification seems
5:50very dangerous to me. Personally, being
5:53a male, I'm reminded uh of a discussion
5:55that a man had with his wife. He
5:57inquired about what his wife did all day
5:59while he was at work.
6:02That conversation did not go very well.
6:05Uh especially considering the fact that
6:06they had three children under the age of
6:08eight.
6:10So, a few days later, the man returned
6:11from work and found his three children
6:13outside, still in their pajamas, playing
6:15in the mud. Empty food boxes and
6:17wrappers were scattered around the front
6:20yard. The front door was open. The house
6:22was a complete mess. Toys were
6:23everywhere. Dishes were piled up.
6:25Laundry was scattered. Wet towels on the
6:27floor. And even toothpaste smeared on
6:30the bathroom mirror and walls. He rushed
6:33upstairs and found his wife still in bed
6:35in her pajamas, calmly reading a novel.
6:39She looked up, smiled, and said, "How
6:41was your day, honey?"
6:43Bewildered, he said, "What happened here
6:44today?" She smiled and replied, "You
6:46remember asking me what in the world I
6:48do all day?" "Yes," he said. She said,
6:50"Well, today I didn't do it."
6:56I don't think he ever asked that
6:58question again.
7:00In the English translation of scripture,
7:03labor carries a double meaning. It's
7:07hard work, but it is also the intense
7:09process of childbirth.
7:11The scripture does not limit labor to a
7:14male-dominant exercise. In fact, the
7:17typology in this passage
7:19brings a greater understanding to the
7:21hard work of soul winning by using the
7:23analogy of a mother laboring in
7:26childbirth.
7:28Jesus looked at the crowds with deep
7:30compassion. They were harassed and they
7:32were helpless like sheep without a
7:34shepherd. One translation says the
7:36harvest is plentiful, but the laborers
7:40are few.
7:41Therefore, pray earnestly to the Lord.
7:44The word earnestly in its original
7:46translation moves the needle more toward
7:49labor that involves travail.
7:53The laborers that Jesus asked us to pray
7:55for are not merely hired hands. They're
7:57not just people that are produced
7:59through the processes of society, but
8:01rather it is through a travail that
8:05resembles birth. Painful, purposeful,
8:09and ultimately joyful birth.
8:13ALL THE JOY OF praying with somebody
8:16when they receive THE HOLY GHOST. ALL
8:18THE JOY OF TEACHING A BIBLE study to
8:20someone that at some point says, "I got
8:23it. I want to be baptized in Jesus' name
8:25and I want to be filled with the gift of
8:28THE HOLY GHOST." ALL THE JOY HALLELUJAH.
8:31OF TALKING TO SOMEBODY, sharing your
8:33testimony, witnessing. The backdrop of
8:36that understanding allows us to lift
8:38some principles that reveal the
8:40heartbeat of God from this text. The
8:43first one is simply this, the harvest
8:46requires laborers who have themselves
8:50been born through travail. John 4 says
8:54the fields are white and ready, yet the
8:56workers are few. Jesus does not first
8:59call for better strategies or MORE
9:02RESOURCES, HE CALLS FOR PEOPLE.
9:06THOSE PEOPLE ARE THEMSELVES
9:08the fruit of a prior spiritual birth
9:11process. Paul describes this reality in
9:14Galatians chapter 4 and verse 9, "My
9:17little children, for whom I am again in
9:19the anguish of childbirth until Christ
9:23is formed in you." The verb that he uses
9:26comes from a a Latin word odino, it's a
9:28specific term for suffering birth pains.
9:32SPIRITUAL LABORERS ARE NOT MANUFACTURED
9:35IN A CLASSROOM. THEY ARE FORMED AS JESUS
9:39TAKES SHAPE IN US THROUGH THE LOVING,
9:42painful investment of others. I I do not
9:46today stand in this pulpit and pretend
9:49to have a full understanding of the pain
9:52and travail that is involved in natural
9:55childbirth. I know just enough through
9:58the birth of our three children to know
9:59that it is not an easy process for a
10:01mother
10:02to bring about new life. The level OF
10:05DISCOMFORT STARTS LONG BEFORE THE day of
10:08delivery. The craving of unusual foods
10:12in the middle of the night
10:14that wake you up.
10:16Sometimes it's not even food.
10:18I read about one mother who CRAVED DIRT.
10:23I'M NOT EVEN SURE OF ALL OF THE
10:25PHYSIOLOGICAL COMPONENTS THAT WOULD
10:27CONSTRUCT SUCH A CRAVING.
10:30BUT I CAN TELL YOU I'VE NEVER CRAVED TO
10:33EAT DIRT.
10:36FORTUNATELY, MY WIFE AMY DID NOT crave
10:38dirt.
10:40But she did crave McDonald's french
10:41fries late at night.
10:44And I do, too, but I don't have a good
10:45excuse for it.
10:51Except during that 8 that she carried
10:54our twin sons, I felt as a loving
10:56husband
10:58that I NEEDED TO JOIN her in those
11:00cravings of
11:02McDonald's french fries.
11:06I will SAY THIS ABOUT MCDONALD'S, THEY
11:09IT'S NOT SOMETHING THAT we eat at on a
11:11normal basis here in America, but when
11:13you are overseas
11:15and you see those golden arches,
11:19it just got to be a little bit about
11:21what it's going to be like when we get
11:22to heaven and see those streets of gold.
11:26It is a spiritual experience.
11:29And McDonald's overseas is delicious. I
11:31don't know why, I don't know how,
11:34maybe because it's comparative to the
11:36native food that's being offered, BUT IT
11:38IS SO GOOD.
11:40LONG BEFORE THERE'S VISIBLE EVIDENCE of
11:42a baby being born, the mother is
11:44changing
11:46to ACCOMMODATE NEW LIFE. LONG BEFORE A
11:48SOUL IS WON TO THE LORD, there's a
11:51praying mother or a praying father that
11:53has A BURDEN AND SOMETHING IS CHANGING
11:56ON THE INSIDE.
11:59NOBODY CAN GIVE YOU A BURDEN. THERE'S NO
12:01PROGRAM THAT CAN GIVE YOU A BURDEN. IT'S
12:03JUST GOT TO BE SOMETHING THAT HAPPENS
12:04BETWEEN YOU AND GOD [screaming] WHEN YOU
12:06BEGIN TO TRAVAIL IN YOUR SOUL FOR A LOST
12:11OR UNSAVED LOVED ONE.
12:13Isaiah 66:7 says, "Before she travailed,
12:17she brought forth.
12:19Before her pain came, she was delivered
12:22of a man child." This is referring to
12:24the spiritual experience of what Jesus
12:26did. Zion travailed. Isaiah 66:7 goes on
12:31through verse 9. It talks about Zion
12:33bringing forth children, sometimes
12:35suddenly, always by God's sovereign
12:37power. It says, and I quote, "Shall I
12:39bring to the point of birth and not
12:42cause to bring forth?" There's a promise
12:43from God.
12:45Just like natural childbirth, eventually
12:49is not going to do just be all the signs
12:51of birth without there being a process.
12:52That process is leading to a moment.
12:55It's leading to a point that's going to
12:59bring about life. Every true laborer is
13:02first a child of God born of the Spirit,
13:05John 3 says. And when we were in Taiwan
13:08for this national conference, we were so
13:09blessed to meet so many first
13:12generational Christians. Most of them
13:13were Buddhist just a few short years
13:16ago. And the missionary told us that for
13:18each soul that is saved and discipled,
13:21it is a 3-year process.
13:24A 3-year process to where they can get
13:27to the point where they see it, they
13:30believe it, they know it, and they
13:32embrace it. This is A PROCESS. YOU
13:34CANNOT MICROWAVE IT. YOU CANNOT SHORT
13:38circuit it. There is a spiritual
13:40EXPERIENCE THAT IS SUD- SUDDENLY sound
13:43came from heaven. Suddenly the Holy
13:45Ghost falls upon us. YOU CAN SUDDENLY
13:48MAKE A DECISION TO BE BAPTIZED, but oh
13:50my friend, when you change and you
13:52decide that you're going to walk with
13:53God, it's a process. It's a discipleship
13:56process. And can I tell YOU THE MOST
13:59EFFECTIVE SOUL WINNERS ARE PEOPLE
14:01THEMSELVES [screaming] THAT HAVE GONE
14:03THROUGH THE PROCESS. OH MY FRIEND, DON'T
14:06EVER GET IMPATIENT WITH SOMEBODY. IT MAY
14:08BE TAKING THEM A WHILE TO COME TO THE
14:10LORD, BUT OH, THEY'RE LAYING THE
14:12FOUNDATION. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO JUST BE
14:14SAVED FOR THEMSELVES SO THEY CAN MISS
14:17THE TORMENT OF HELL. THEY'RE GOING TO BE
14:19A SOUL WINNER THEMSELVES. [screaming]
14:21THEY'RE GOING TO BE A MIDWIFE
14:22THEMSELVES. THEY'RE GOING TO BE A FELLOW
14:25LABORER [screaming]
14:26IN THE GOSPEL.
14:30THE SECOND principle
14:32coming from this scripture is simply
14:33this, the work
14:35of a laborer
14:37involves birth-like intensity
14:40that ultimately ends in joy.
14:43Being sent into the harvest is not
14:45casual employment. The verb send out in
14:48Matthew 9:38 comes from this word
14:51elballo. It carries this meaning of a a
14:55sense of driving out. It is forceful.
14:58It matches
15:00the intensity
15:01of labor. Jesus himself used the
15:04childbirth image in John 16:21 to
15:06describe the disciples' coming sorrow
15:09and joy. He said, "A woman giveth birth
15:12to a child has pain because her time has
15:15come. But when her baby is born, she
15:17forgets the anguish because of her joy
15:21that a child is born into the world."
15:25Now,
15:26for us menfolk that have never given
15:28birth to a child,
15:30I think the only way that I can tell you
15:32that it could be similar in this
15:34particular aspect is that if you have
15:37ever built a house,
15:39when you finally get in the house,
15:42you say to your wife, as I did,
15:44"If I ever get the idea again that I
15:46want to build a house,
15:49I want you to remind me of this moment.
15:52I have lost my mind.
15:54I want you to hit me over the head with
15:56one of the spare 2x4s that we have in
15:58the backyard that wasn't needed for
16:00construction.
16:01Because when you get to the point of
16:03completion,
16:05you're like, "Oh, thank God. Never
16:06again." But over the years, you forget
16:08about all of the pain.
16:10And you just remember the joy of being
16:12in a house that was designed just as you
16:14wanted it to be made custom made. You
16:17got every little nook and cranny just
16:19the way you wanted it to be made. And
16:21you think, "WE CAN DO THIS AGAIN." AND
16:23YOUR WIFE REMINDS [screaming] YOU,
16:25"NEVER!
16:27NEVER AGAIN."
16:31WE WERE ONLY MARRIED for just a few six
16:34to eight months whenever we did all the
16:37things that they tell you not to do in
16:39your first year of marriage.
16:42We found out that
16:43my wife was pregnant. We found out that
16:45twins were coming. We put our house up
16:47for sale. We had a capital stewardship
16:50campaign going on here at the church
16:53cuz we were wanting to build the life
16:54center and at the same time we built a
16:55house. We needed a bigger house cuz we
16:57had two more coming.
16:59I mean, in a matter of 12 months 12
17:01months we went from one, me, to four.
17:07When we got through it all, we were
17:09like, IF WE CAN SURVIVE THIS, WE CAN
17:11SURVIVE ANYTHING [screaming] IN
17:12MARRIAGE.
17:15BUT SOMETIMES WHEN YOU THINK BACK, YOU
17:17DON'T REMEMBER ALL [laughter] the
17:18hardship. You don't remember all the
17:19pain. I told my boys, and some of you
17:22that went to Bible school, too, you can
17:23relate to this. I SAID, YOU DON'T EVER
17:25remember all the pain of being in Bible
17:27school. Years later, all you remember is
17:29the friendships that you made, and you
17:30tell all the stories of all the crazy
17:32things that you did. I'm still finding
17:34out I found out things at General
17:35Conference just a few weeks ago of some
17:38things that my sons did Bible school
17:39that I didn't know anything about, but
17:41their friends ratted them out
17:44at General Conference. I got a call one
17:47day. I don't even know if I've ever told
17:49y'all this, but I got a call from a
17:50Chick-fil-A manager
17:53in Wentzville, which is a little town
17:54where they all went to Bible school up
17:55in the St. Louis area,
17:57and they said, "Is this David Myers?"
17:59And I said, "Yes." And he said, "I'm the
18:01manager of the Chick-fil-A at
18:03Wentzville. I want my cardboard cow
18:06back."
18:10I SAID, "WHAT?
18:12I LIVE IN FLORIDA."
18:15HE SAID, "THE RECORD SHOWS THAT YOU used
18:17your points today to come in to
18:20Chick-fil-A and you took our cowboard
18:23our cardboard cow on your way out."
18:28I said, "I DIDN'T TAKE IT, BUT I KNOW
18:30who did."
18:33I called my sons AND I SAID, "BRING
18:35CHICK-FIL-A THEIR COW BACK
18:38AND QUIT USING MY POINTS AT
18:40CHICK-FIL-A."
18:46>> [laughter]
18:50>> YEARS LATER, YOU DON'T REMEMBER ALL THE
18:53THE THE LONELINESS of being Bible
18:54school. You don't remember it being
18:56being, you know, homesick. You don't
18:57remember all the craziness that you do
18:59to sacrifice to get through college, but
19:01all you remember the relationships. You
19:03remember the friendships. Years later,
19:05after you build a house, you don't
19:06remember all the times of thinking you
19:08were going to lose your mind and and and
19:10should we do this and should we do that
19:12and should we upgrade and downgrade and
19:13this and that and all the process. Even
19:15the building of this church, I think
19:17back on the building of this church and
19:18I have nothing but good thoughts. I
19:20think about how the Lord blessed us. We
19:21built this thing in 10 and 1/2 months.
19:23It won a national award. The builder
19:25went to Las Vegas to pick up the award
19:27and the building was in the newspaper
19:29and God has filled it with all of you
19:31wonderful saints of God and I look back
19:33and I think God was in it through all of
19:35it, but every day
19:39every day was hard. Every day was like,
19:42are we going to make it? Finally, at one
19:43point, my good friend brother Larry
19:44Sims, who was a builder and a pastor in
19:46in Tallahassee where my wife and the
19:48Golden family are from, and they he was
19:50here as the as the project manager of it
19:52all and I was like, "WHAT ARE WE GOING
19:53TO DO? THE DRYWALL'S OUT THERE. IT'S
19:55GOING TO RAIN. ALL THE DRYWALL'S GOING
19:56TO BE RUINED. WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO BUY
19:57IT ALL OVER AGAIN." AND I'M IN THE
19:58TRAILER CONSTRUCTION AND I'M CRYING. AND
19:59HE FINALLY SAID TO ME, "DAVID, IF YOU
20:01WOULD LEAVE TOWN, [screaming] WE WOULD
20:03GET THIS THING BUILT."
20:10AND SO I did. My dad and I went on
20:12vacation to the Bahamas.
20:15>> [laughter]
20:17>> We came back after 3 days and we're
20:19like, "Man, everything looks awesome."
20:20The steeple was up. Things were clicking
20:22along. And you know what? I think back
20:24now and I think boy, what a great time
20:25we had all the men working down here
20:27together and the ladies would cook and
20:28all the fun and you don't remember it so
20:31winning is the same way. You don't
20:32remember all the pain of of being
20:34rejected. You don't remember the pain of
20:36the hardship and the heartache. There
20:37are people that are in this building
20:38right now that I could tell you some
20:40stories about how they used to I mean, I
20:43used to get letters from people who were
20:44unsaved loved ones. They had their
20:46spouse was in the church and was saved
20:47but they weren't in the church. They
20:48were not saved and they would send me
20:50letters, mean letters. I thought my life
20:52was being threatened. They said the
20:54church is ruining our marriage. The
20:56church is ruining our home. The church
20:57is ruining our kids. The church is this.
21:00The church is that and I was like, I
21:02just got to I got to intensify my
21:03prayers.
21:04And so about 25 years ago, man, I'd tell
21:08you what, this guy that had sent me all
21:10these letters, I won't tell you who he
21:11is but his name's Joe DeMarco.
21:20>> [laughter]
21:25>> Lisa DeMarco was driving all the way up
21:27here from Vero Beach and here's the
21:29crazy thing about it. Joe DeMarco had
21:31won her to the Lord when they were in
21:33college at FSU. By the way, didn't they
21:35get ripped off last night?
21:37FSU.
21:39I still got a bad attitude about that
21:41game last night but
21:43he won her to the Lord at FSU and so she
21:44came here and she found a Pentecostal
21:46church and she used to drive all the way
21:47up here from Vero. She was our music
21:49director and uh he had a he'd gotten
21:52hurt. It wasn't his own fault but he got
21:54hurt, got a wounded spirit and Joe had
21:56backslid and got out of church and then
21:58Lisa, she was a such a strong What a
22:00great lady of God Sister Lisa DeMarco
22:02is.
22:03>> [applause]
22:03>> She's such a blessing to our church.
22:08I'm so glad she even sits on our our our
22:10our board of directors here at our
22:12church and she's a great blessing. And
22:14uh Sister Lisa for years would
22:15faithfully drive up here and brought her
22:17kids and that
22:18you know, you saw Stephanie up here. She
22:19brought her as a little girl and uh she
22:22brought her family up here, and she
22:24would bring the kids up there. And
22:25meanwhile, Joe was at home. What it was
22:27was Joe was under conviction.
22:29Cuz he knew that finally the day came.
22:32He had worked down there, I think it was
22:33uh for Piper and Vero. And uh the guy
22:35he'd worked for, his boss, Mark Miller,
22:37he had come up here and been transferred
22:39to Liberty Aircraft, and he just came
22:41over to the church one day and said,
22:42"I've read the Bible through from cover
22:43to cover, and I'm convinced that I need
22:44to be baptized in Jesus' name." And he
22:46said, "I know that Jesus Christ is the
22:48answer. I wasn't raised in the church."
22:50So, we baptized him in Jesus' name. He's
22:51filled with the Holy Ghost. He actually
22:53pastors another church here in town now,
22:55and Mark Miller was his boss. And so,
22:57they were working together. He was
22:59recruiting Joe from to come up from
23:00Piper Aircraft, and they drove by the
23:02church, and they just drove by the
23:03church. And Joe said, "You know what?
23:06Lydia Lydia and West were getting ready
23:08to get married." And Mark says to your
23:10dad, Lydia, "You know what?
23:13That's the church I just started going
23:14to." And Joe said, "You're kidding me.
23:16That's the church my daughter's getting
23:17married in
23:18in a couple of weeks." And he said, "Why
23:20don't you come to church with me, Joe?"
23:22Joe came to church, prayed back through,
23:24and all these years later,
23:26he's still serving in the kingdom of
23:27God.
23:29>> [applause]
23:31>> ALL YOU REMEMBER IS THE [screaming] JOY
23:33OF SALVATION.
23:35ALL YOU REMEMBER IS THE JOY OF SPIRITUAL
23:37BIRTH. THAT'S ALL YOU REMEMBER. OH, MY
23:40FRIEND, CAN I TELL YOU THERE'S NO JOY
23:42LIKE BEING A SOUL WINNER.
23:43>> [screaming]
23:43>> THERE'S NO JOY LIKE BEING A FELLOW
23:45LABORER TOGETHER. THERE IS A CALL
23:48[screaming] THAT IS GOING FORTH. THERE
23:50IS A HARVEST. THERE IS A CITY THAT IS
23:53HUNGRY FOR YOU AND I.
23:57SHARE THE GOSPEL. SHARE THE GOSPEL.
24:01PAUL'S OWN MINISTRY language reflects
24:03this. He labored to the point of
24:04exhaustion in Colossians 1:29. He spoke
24:06of being gentle among the Thessalonians
24:08like a nursing mother taking care of her
24:10own children. 1 Thessalonians 2:7. The
24:13same person who travailed in birth for
24:15the Galatians also nurtured like a
24:17mother. True laborers know both the
24:20contractions and the cradling.
24:22Creation itself still groans, the Bible
24:24says, as in the pains of childbirth,
24:27Romans 8:22, waiting for the full
24:29revealing of the sons of God. Our
24:32present labor participates in that
24:34larger groaning that ends
24:38in glory.
24:40You know what? You could go all the way
24:41back to the book of Genesis and you can
24:42see that we were created for labor.
24:46We were created for labor.
24:48It's not just in the natural sense.
24:49People that work hard, they live long. I
24:51think that's why we've got so many
24:53people here in this church that are even
24:55up into their 90s and God is still
24:57blessing them with quality of life cuz
24:59they've been hard workers, both
25:01spiritually and physically. I think of
25:03of Brother Ben Segerly who's up in his
25:05mid-90s and how much he would labor down
25:07here physically in this church all of
25:09these years. I think of my dad who who
25:12would teach Bible studies at night and
25:14and run a stucco going and plastering
25:16business during the day and would work
25:18all day. And you know what?
25:20You were created to work.
25:23The physical illustrates the spiritual.
25:25People that work with their hands,
25:27people that are hard workers, live
25:29longer. And spiritually speaking, you
25:32were created to labor.
25:35You were not created to just come to
25:37church and to hear sermon after sermon
25:40after sermon. YOU WERE NOT SAVED just
25:43for your own PERSONAL SALVATION. YOU
25:46WERE SAVED. YOU WERE BORN AGAIN TO BE
25:50LABORERS IN THE GOSPEL.
25:53OH, my friend, I'm asking in these next
25:548 days, I'm calling upon you as the
25:57pastor of this church, I want you to
25:59take this bookmark and I want you to
26:01pray every day. I want you to pray,
26:03"God, I want an outpouring of the Holy
26:06Ghost in this conference, not just for
26:08this church, but for this community. I
26:11want THERE TO BE AN OUTPOURING OF THE
26:12HOLY GHOST LIKE WE'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE.
26:15I BELIEVE IF WE LAY THE GROUNDWORK, IF
26:18WE'LL WITNESS TO SOMEBODY, IF WE'LL
26:20LABOR TOGETHER, GOD WILL GIVE US A
26:23HARVEST.
26:25AND FINALLY, the third point, prayer
26:27is the intercessory labor
26:29that helps bring forth more laborers.
26:33Jesus' command is clear. Pray
26:36earnestly.
26:37Literally, that means to beseech or to
26:39plead.
26:41Prayer is not a preliminary step before
26:42the real work. It is itself a form of
26:45labor.
26:46When we cry out for God to thrust
26:49workers into the harvest, we join in
26:51that process of spiritual birth. This is
26:53consistent with biblical patterns.
26:55Intercessors and spiritual parents
26:58travail
26:59until Christ is formed
27:03in others.
27:04There was a time on Sunday last Sunday
27:06when we were preaching at the church in
27:08in Taipei, Taiwan, when the lady who had
27:11interpreted for me. The people are
27:13absolutely amazing. These people
27:17are leaders in their community. One of
27:18the interpreters had done two or three
27:20TED Talks. He goes all over the world
27:21speaking on the gaming of life. I'm not
27:24even sure what that is, but I'm
27:25intrigued by that subject matter. The
27:26gaming of life. They They literally take
27:29the gaming aspect of competition and
27:31they employ it into all the different
27:33aspects of life, work and family and all
27:36the different things. And And he has
27:38developed some sort of a a system and
27:40he's done a couple of these
27:42uh They call them TED Talks. Is that
27:44what it is? And they go out California
27:46and they speak. It's a big thing on
27:47social media, whatever. And so, it's all
27:49of these different concepts and
27:50philosophies and principles. And all
27:52these people are doctors. And this one
27:53guy who's like some sort of a of a He
27:55He's He's the designer
27:58of all of these special kind of chips.
28:01And he was on a plane and he got next to
28:03In fact, Brother Bernard, our general
28:04superintendent, referred to this at uh
28:06General Conference. He He got intrigued
28:08by talking to a person on the plane and
28:10uh he got intrigued by this apostolic
28:12that was witnessing to him. And uh he
28:14said, "I want to receive the Holy
28:15Ghost." And so, they got off the
28:17airplane and they got in the terminal
28:18and he said, "I'm ready to receive the
28:19Holy Ghost." And so, he said, "Okay,
28:22let's uh let's pray for the Holy Ghost."
28:24And he said, "Right here?" He said,
28:25"Right here, we'll pray for the Holy
28:26Ghost." And they started to pray and
28:27they said, uh "Sir, you get you guys are
28:29going to have to go somewhere." So, they
28:30end up going in the bathroom at at a at
28:33an airport. And this man who is a is
28:35like some sort of a high-end uh
28:37engineering nuclear physicist, I don't
28:39know, whatever, but he's uh some kind of
28:41a designer. I didn't even know this, but
28:43like 80 80 80 to 90%
28:47of the AI No, it's 90% of the AI chips
28:51that are in computers are all made in
28:52the country of Taiwan. And there's a
28:54revival among these superintelligent
28:56people and God's using them. Oh my,
28:59USING THEM AS FELLOW LABORERS IN THE
29:01HARVEST.
29:03And I think it's like something like 90%
29:04of AI chips and 80% of the total chips
29:07for computers all are made in Taiwan.
29:08Anyways, and and and he was the
29:10originator and he designed some kind of
29:11a system that we all use. I think it's
29:13for facial recognition, whatever. And uh
29:15and and so, they go into the bathroom.
29:17This apostolic is in there in the middle
29:18of the bathroom of an airport. He prays
29:20for him and he gets the Holy Ghost in
29:21there and they introduce him to the
29:22church. He was there at the conference
29:24that we were at. He was praying people
29:25through to the Holy Ghost. This lady
29:27that interpreted for me,
29:30she started praying for somebody to get
29:31the Holy Ghost and while she was praying
29:33for it, she started to intercede. And
29:35the missionary said to me, "That's the
29:36first time that I've ever heard her
29:38intercede before." He said, "God has put
29:41something in HER SPIRIT." OH,
29:43I KNEW WHAT IT WAS. IT WAS THAT
29:45INTERCESSORY. IT WAS A SPIRIT OF
29:47[screaming] INTERCESSION THAT COMES UPON
29:49US ALL. I BELIEVE GOD'S CALLING US AT
29:51EASTWIND TO GET A SPIRIT [screaming] OF
29:54INTERCESSION THAT SAYS, "I CAN'T JUST
29:56LAY DOWN ON MY PILLOW AT NIGHT AND NOT
29:58BE MOVED." GIVE US SOME BURDEN, LORD.
30:01[screaming] GIVE US A BURDEN.
30:04GIVE US a burden, Lord, for lost souls.
30:08Church's prayer meetings become the
30:10delivery room where God answers by
30:12sending people. We cannot manufacture
30:14laborers, but we can participate in the
30:17birth process through persistent
30:20earnest prayer. I hope you'll be here
30:21Wednesday night. We're going to come
30:23together and we're going to pray with an
30:24intensity. Just as a mother does not
30:26decide the exact moment of delivery, yet
30:29fully engages the labor, so we do not
30:32control the sending, yet we are
30:33commanded to plead with the Lord of the
30:36harvest. God has promised that when he
30:38begins a work of bringing forth, he
30:41finishes it. Shall I bring to the birth
30:44and not cause to bring forth, saith the
30:46Lord. And then I saw these scriptures
30:49this morning and I wanted to share this
30:50with you as I thought this was so
30:52powerful. It illustrates even Paul who
30:55had this great revelation. He says this
30:57in Philippians 4:3,
30:59And I entreat thee also, true
31:01yokefellow,
31:03help those
31:05women
31:06which labor with me in the gospel,
31:10with Clement also,
31:11and with other my fellow laborers,
31:14whose names are in the book of life.
31:17He's saying I can't even name who all
31:19they all are.
31:21Men and women,
31:22but we have labored together.
31:25We are fellow laborers.
31:28Fellow laborers. And then in 1
31:30Thessalonians 3:2,
31:32he says this, And sent Timotheus, our
31:36brother,
31:38and minister of God,
31:40and our fellow laborer
31:43in the gospel of Christ to establish
31:45you,
31:46and to comfort you concerning your
31:49faith. And the Lord spoke to me this
31:52morning
31:53and said,
31:56I want you to honor
31:58Brother Timotheus, your fellow laborer.
32:00I want Brother Richie to come up here.
32:08>> [applause]
32:14[applause]
32:14>> I love you so much.
32:15>> too.
32:23>> [applause]
32:31>> So, I'm the one that gets to preach
32:33general conference. I'm the one that
32:34gets to preach all over the world.
32:37And I wouldn't be able to do any of it
32:38without this man.
32:42>> [applause]
32:52>> He's a a fellow laborer.
32:54And I read that this morning and it said
32:57Timotheus.
32:59And I said
33:00he's even got the name Timothy.
33:05And so
33:07Brother Richie, I want to give you this
33:09Bible
33:10as a token of our appreciation to you.
33:13In my opinion
33:14this is
33:16the finest Bible that's made.
33:20It's made in England.
33:22Handmade.
33:23It's called an Allen Bible.
33:25The pages
33:27come from India.
33:30And this cover
33:31is some kind of a goat.
33:38From the Highlands of Scotland.
33:41And uh
33:43I don't know
33:45but I know that the kids refer to a goat
33:47as the greatest of all time.
33:50And I want to say that you're the
33:51greatest assistant pastor of all time.
33:54>> [applause]
33:55>> You're the goat.
33:59>> [applause]
34:08[applause]
34:14>> So, I just signed the inside of it and I
34:15said, "Reverend Timothy Ritchie,
34:18to my faithful friend and fellow labor
34:20in the gospel, thank you for loving and
34:23serving East Wind Church.
34:26I love you.
34:28Stay up here with me.
34:29>> [applause]
34:29>> Stay up here with me.
34:38>> [applause]
34:39>> You can remain standing.
34:41And then it says,
34:44"Philemon 1:1, Paul, a prisoner of Jesus
34:46Christ,
34:48and Timothy,
34:50our brother." Now, I I knew he had
34:51referred to Timothy as his fellow labor.
34:55But what I didn't realize was all the
34:57others he referred to. And Philemon,
35:00our dearly beloved and fellow labor.
35:04You never hear about Philemon much.
35:07Timothy's got a a book written after him
35:10in the Bible.
35:11Philemon has got a book written after
35:13him. Although it's a really little book.
35:15You have to search pretty hard in
35:17the sticky part of your Bible to find
35:19that book.
35:21But then Philemon 1:24 says, "Marcus,
35:25Aristarchus Demas
35:29Lucas, my fellow
35:32labors."
35:35Paul is saying,
35:37"We labored together
35:40for a cause that was bigger than
35:42ourselves.
35:44People whose names you may never know.
35:48But they are fellow laborers in the
35:50gospel.
35:51Clement, these women he says I
35:54with I I'm so grateful he added that in
35:56Philippians.
35:58Which labored with me in the gospel.
36:02Timothy was result
36:06of a praying mother.
36:08Timothy was a result of intercessors
36:11that prayed for him.
36:13This plentiful harvest that you and I
36:15see around us
36:17it stands before the church
36:19and it cries out.
36:21Jesus said pray for the laborers are
36:23few.
36:25But the remedy has not changed.
36:28Pray the Lord of the harvest
36:30travail
36:32send out laborers.
36:34Together all of us
36:36working together for this cause that's
36:38bigger than ourselves.
36:40We got these
36:42that are down here are these bookmarks
36:44eight days. I'm going to ask you to take
36:45the next eight days
36:47and to pray.
36:49If you don't have a burden
36:50I want to thank you. I want everybody to
36:51come together.
36:53I want Marcus,
36:54>> [music]
36:54>> Aristarchus,
36:55Demas Lucas.
36:58Demas, we think of Demas.
37:00And just stay down here in the altar
37:01area if you would. We're going to pray
37:03together in just a moment.
37:08We think of Demas and we think
37:11of the part where Paul said Demas hath
37:12forsaken me having loved this present
37:14world but there was a time when he was a
37:16fellow laborer.
37:21Timotheus,
37:23Philemon.
37:27If you'll just step out from where
37:28you're standing, come down here you're
37:29saying, "You know what, pastor, together
37:31let's labor together.
37:32Let's work together.
37:34Who knows
37:36how much longer we have?
37:39When I'm in Asia I'm
37:42my mind is blown about
37:44how advanced they are. There
37:47there is a day of reckoning coming in
37:49this [music] world, ladies and
37:50gentlemen.
37:52And God is sending revival.
37:55The areas that we have always been told
37:59that really is the largest unchurched
38:01groups, there are four targeted areas,
38:03Asia, the Middle East,
38:06urban cities in America, and the youth.
38:10They say those are the four largest
38:12people groups
38:14that are unchurched in the world.
38:16And yet we see that those are the groups
38:18that are having the greatest revival.
38:22Young people,
38:2445,000 of them fill a stadium.
38:27Apostolic young people because of the
38:29hunger of this generation.
38:31Authentic.
38:33Already this year,
38:35Jesus Tent Revival has baptized over
38:375,000 people in Jesus' name.
38:41Because people are hungry for revival.
38:42[applause]
38:47I know it can sound heavy to talk about
38:49this, but it's joy. It really is joy.
38:53It's joy unspeakable and full of glory.
38:57And if you'll bind together with us,
38:58maybe you can just take the hand of the
38:59person that you're standing next to,
39:02because the key is to be fellow laborers
39:04together.
39:06There's a reason why a lady's not by
39:07herself when she gives childbirth, but
39:09all the help that comes, midwives,
39:11fellow laborers, people that come to
39:14help and to assist,
39:16because it's worthwhile.
39:19It's new life.
39:22This is spiritual life.
39:24It's going to be worth it all.
39:27It's going TO BE WORTH IT ALL.
39:30EVERY HEARTACHE, EVERY TRIAL.
39:36OH, WOULD YOU LIFT YOUR VOICE right now?
39:37WOULD TAKE THE HAND OF THE PERSON YOU'RE
39:39NEXT TO?
39:41WOULD YOU COMMIT YOURSELF TO BE A FELLOW
39:43LABORER IN THE GOSPEL?
39:46THANK YOU, LORD, FOR [screaming] THE JOY
39:47THAT IS SET BEFORE US.
39:52LORD, YOU SAID ONE COULD PUT TO FLIGHT A
39:53THOUSAND, BUT TWO COULD PUT TO FLIGHT
39:5510,000.
39:58THERE'S POWER IN UNITY.
40:01I THANK YOU FOR THIS GREAT CHURCH, LORD.
40:03I THANK YOU FOR THESE PEOPLE THAT LOVE
40:05YOU.
40:06Called by your name.
40:09I PRAY GOD THAT YOU WOULD GIVE US A
40:10BURDEN OF INTERCESSION.
40:13GIVE US A BURDEN FOR SOUL WINNING.
40:16TO BE FELLOW LABORERS TOGETHER IN THE
40:18GOSPEL.
40:21OH, GOD, WE DESIRE YOU, LORD.
40:25WE'RE NOT AFRAID, LORD, TO COMMIT
40:27OURSELVES TO THE TASK.
40:31OH, GOD, CHANGE US FROM THE INSIDE.
40:34CHANGE US FROM THE INSIDE, OH GOD.
41:01>> [music]
41:03>> HALLELUJAH, JESUS.
41:07IN THE NAME OF JESUS.
41:12>> [music]
41:14[singing]
41:19[music and singing]
41:20>> YES, LORD.
41:25>> [music]
41:28>> HALLELUJAH, JESUS. YES, LORD.
41:33SHOUT JESUS FROM THE MOUNTAINS.
41:37SHOUT JESUS IN THE STREETS. [music]
41:45>> [music]
41:50>> YES, LORD.
41:52>> [music]
41:53>> HALLELUJAH. HALLELUJAH.
41:56YES LORD.
41:58>> [music]
42:08[music]
42:09>> YES, LORD. YES, LORD. YES, LORD.
42:19>> [music]
42:23[singing]
42:26>> Jesus in the streets.
42:28>> [music]
42:34[music]
42:43[music]
42:52[music]
42:55>> Jesus in the
43:01Yes, Jesus for my family. [music]
43:05I speak the holy name.
43:10>> [music]
43:18[music]
43:20>> Your name is life.
43:25Yeah.
43:25>> [music and singing]
43:28>> Break every stronghold.
43:31>> [music and singing]
43:32>> Shine through the shadows.
43:34>> Burn like a fire.
43:35>> Burn like
43:37>> [music]
43:37>> a fire.
43:37>> Oh,
43:41your name is
43:42>> Your name
43:43is love.
43:43>> Your
43:44>> [music and singing]
43:45>> name is healing.
43:45>> Your
43:46name is healing.
43:47>> Your
43:47name is life.
43:48>> Your
43:50name is life.
43:50>> Oh,
43:54yes.
43:55>> Break [music] every stronghold.
43:57>> Shine
43:58through the shadows.
43:58>> Shine through the
43:59shadows.
44:00>> Burn like a fire.
44:02>> Burn like a fire.
44:04>> [music]
44:04>> Oh,
44:05your name is
44:08>> Your name
44:09>> [singing]
44:09>> is power.
44:10>> Oh, yes, it is.
44:11>> Your
44:12name is healing.
44:13>> The only saving name of Jesus.
44:16>> Your
44:16name is life.
44:17>> Oh.
44:19>> [music and singing]
44:21>> Break every stronghold.
44:24>> Shine through the shadows.
44:24>> Shine
44:25through the shadows.
44:26>> [music]
44:28>> Burn like a fire.
44:29>> Burn like a
44:32>> And we're going to shout Jesus.
44:35>> Shout Jesus from
44:37the mountain.
44:39Jesus in
44:40the streets.
44:40>> We're going to tell [music] the whole
44:41world about
44:42>> Jesus in the
44:43darkness over
44:46every enemy.
44:47>> And
44:47>> [music]
44:47>> Jesus for my family.
44:49>> Jesus for my
44:50family.
44:52I speak
44:53>> [singing]
44:53>> the holy name
44:55of
44:55>> [music]
44:56>> Jesus.
44:58Shout Jesus
45:00from the mountain.
45:00>> [music and singing]
45:01>> Tell Jesus
45:03from the roof.
45:04>> Tell the whole world about him.
45:05>> Jesus
45:07in the streets.
45:08Jesus in
45:10the darkness
45:11>> [music]
45:11>> over
45:12every enemy.
45:13>> And Jesus for
45:14my family.
45:15>> Jesus
45:16for my family.
45:17>> I speak
45:18>> I speak [music] the holy
45:20name
45:20>> of
45:21Jesus.
45:21>> Jesus.
45:24Shout Jesus from the
45:27>> [music]
45:29[singing]
45:30>> Jesus in
45:31the streets.
45:32>> [music]
45:37[singing]
45:40[music]
45:40>> Oh, Jesus, for my sake.
45:43I speak
45:45>> [music]
45:49>> Oh.
45:50Your name
45:52is power.
45:55>> [music and singing]
45:55>> Your name is Jesus.
45:58Your name is love.
46:00>> [music]
46:07[music]
46:12>> Burn like a fire.
46:14>> [music]
46:17[singing]
46:17>> Your name is power.
46:21Your name
46:22is here.
46:25Your name is love.
46:26>> [music and singing]
46:33[music]
46:34>> Shine through
46:38Burn like a fire.
46:40>> [music]
46:43>> It's your name is
46:48Your name
46:49is here.
46:51Yes it
46:52is.
46:56>> [music]
46:56>> His name
46:57is life.
47:01>> [music]
47:01>> Shine through
47:04Burn like [singing]
47:05a fire.
47:08>> [music]
48:06[music]