“And He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest.’” (Luke 10:9).
I recently read a very interesting story about a man called Jose Luis. In 1942, when he was just twelve years old, he went to spend his Christmas holidays (in Spain) with his uncle who was a priest.
One very cold evening his uncle received word that an old lady was nearing death and wished to receive the Sacraments so that she would be prepared for eternity.
And so, Jose Luis set out that night with his uncle (on foot) to go to the dying woman’s home and administer the sacraments. During their three mile walk, the snow storm that night became fierce and intense. As a result of that ferocity, the two became very lost and disoriented and ciuld not find their way. To make matters worse, Jose Luis’ uncle fell – very badly – and was unable to get up and continue the journey. And so, he sent his nephew off running for help while he waited on the ground in the storm in the snow. The child ran to the nearest home he could find, he woke the occupants and rallied them to return to his very seriously injured uncle. And they managed to reach him, freezing and alone in the snow. When they lifted him up and were deciding where to take hijm, the priest insisted on being taken to the dying woman’s home. And so, they carried him there. Once they arrived, a doctor was called, and the old priest administered the sacraments in whispers to the old lady. But, the priest was very seriously injured and by morning time, both the old lady and the priest had died.
Jose Luis recalled the story as an adult. He said, “I sat next to the fire hearing my uncle’s heavy breath, like a broken machine; somehow I saw him being consumed like a log in the fire... fading away. His smile didn’t fade, though. He was happy to die in the line of duty, warming up others like a log in the fireplace... Then it came clear to my mind: why couldn’t I be the ‘log’ that had to replace him in the ‘fire’?”
Years later, Jose Luis became a priest. He was the next one called to the harvest, because Christ said, “After this the Lord appointed seventy others, and sent them on ahead of him, two by two, into every town and place where He Himself was about to come. And He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few; pray therefore the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into His harvest.’” (Luke 10:1-9).
And I have been thinking about that today. Because this life is so fleeting. And there are others in the harvest right now, and their time is passing. And it occurs to me to ask myself today – what am I doing? And how can I be NEXT to help?
For with prayer, I stand on Holy Ground where everything is clear. Here. At the Foot of the Cross.