Preparing Harvest Workers for the Harvest

By MELINA BAKER
BMA Theological Seminary Bookkeeper

In my role as the bookkeeper here at the seminary, I have the opportunity to participate in registration each semester, and I must say, Fall 2025 has been exciting. With 102 willing harvesters preparing for their missions, we are seeing a 39 percent increase in enrollment from Fall 2024 to Fall 2025. This increase is due to an in-house initiative and an effort by members of the BMA who encouraged young men to pursue biblical education at the seminary. We are grateful to all those who have helped us reach new students, but most importantly, we are thankful for God’s provision in allowing us to continue to fulfill our mission through the students He has brought to us.

Numbers are important, but they do not tell the whole story. The seminary continues to reach beyond its traditional classrooms to fulfill the missional emphasis of the BMA by educating harvest workers worldwide. This chart shows the home countries of our students:

• United States—68 students
  
• Philippines—15 students
  
• Ghana—6 students
  
• Nigeria—3 students
  
• Liberia—2 students
  
• Venezuela—2 students
  
• Guatemala – 1 student
  
• Mexico—1 student
  
• Peru—1 student
  
• South Africa—1 student
  
• United Arab Emirates—1 student
  
• Vietnam—1 student

Of these 102 harvest workers, 52 are on full or partial scholarship. Established scholarship funds provide for 19 of these students for a total of $24,750, but the remaining 32 students are considered unfunded, meaning that although they have proven their need and have exemplified a desire to pursue their education, they do not match the criteria for any of the funds we have available. Of the unfunded students, the vast majority are international students who seek to grow in knowledge so they can share the gospel in their home countries. If the $26,650 of funding does not come through for the remaining students, the funds will be taken from the seminary’s operating funds, which are intended to pay salaries, utilities, maintenance, computer-related expenses and other expenses.

How can you help? First and most importantly, please pray for the seminary as we teach right doctrine and equip harvesters with godly toolkits. Seminary is not an easy undertaking, but it is worthwhile, so pray also for the harvesters and their families during this time of training. If you know of young men who are called to ministry, would you consider sending them our way? Even though we had a robust enrollment, we have room for many more students. Finally, you may feel led to help financially to ensure we are able to continue to educate students going forward at low or no cost to themselves.
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We are eminently grateful for God’s provision. We see it every day and we know that as we seek to do God’s will in our work, He will continue to provide for us and for our students. In meetings at the seminary, the phrase that comes up over and over is the “harvest is great and the harvest workers are few.”  We are keenly aware of our place in training up future harvest workers and we know that God does not assign a mission without providing the means to accomplish it.