Hark, the voice of Jesus crying, “Who will go and work today? Fields are white and harvests waiting- Who will bear the sheaves away?” Loud and long the Master calleth; Rich reward He offers thee. Who will answer, gladly saying, “Here am I, send me, send me”?
If you cannot speak like angels, If you cannot preach like Paul, You can tell the love of Jesus, You can say He died for all. If you cannot rouse the wicked With the judgment’s dread alarms, You can lead the little children To the Savior’s waiting arms.
If you cannot be a watchman, Standing high on Zion’s wall, Pointing out the path to heaven, Off’ring life and peace to all, With your prayers and with your bounties You can do what God commands; You can be like faithful Aaron, Holding up the prophet’s hands.
Let none hear you idly saying, “There is nothing I can do,” While the multitudes are dying and the Master calls for you. Take the task He gives you gladly, Let His work your pleasure be; Answer quickly when He calleth, “Here am I, send me, send me!”
Hark, the Voice of Jesus Crying (826) is one of my favorite hymns. Recently, I read a book about volunteering. It asserts that God gives everyone unique talents to serve Him. We can also serve God in the situations He’s placed us in. We’ll continue to grow in the abilities God gives us and sometimes we’ll develop new talents.
I like this song because of the different suggestions of serving God. Some can speak like a messenger of God. Some can preach well, like Pastor Paul Gaschler (side note, the hymn text was written before our gifted pastor was born). Even if we don’t have those wonderful gifts, we can make a simple statement about our faith in Christ. We even do this every Sunday in the Apostle’s, Nicene, and Athanasian Creeds. Even if we can’t speak the faith to adults; we can be good role models to children and share the simple faith about Jesus.
Sometimes, praying is the way God is calling us to ministry. We can be like Aaron and Hur in Exodus 17 and support the leader of the church, and that is what brings glory to God. We can also give of earthly treasures if that is how God blessed us.
There is some way we can all serve God. If we claim there is nothing we can do; we’re denying a wonderful truth about ourselves. God made us and called all of us according to His purpose. God created us to be in relationship with Him and to share His love and His work with others. This will look different for all of us. Some, like pastor, may have a more vocal role. Some may have a less noticeable role. Some may be placed in the lives of others as a short term or lifelong witness. Others may support others with prayers or other necessary needs.
Thank God for the work He calls each of us to do! Let us respond to God’s grace and answer the one who calls us into His work and ministry.