As the boy packed his lunch that day, I am sure that he had
no idea how significant that action would become.
Jesus was
nearby, teaching and healing a huge crowd of people. As evening came, Jesus’ friends became
concerned about the fact that the crowd had not eaten anything all day. Approaching him they said, “This is a remote
place, and it’s already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to
the villages and buy themselves some food” (Matthew 14:15). Jesus replied, “They do not need to go away. You
give them something to eat” (verse 16).
Philip, looking around and seeing more than five thousand people said, “Eight
months’ wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” (John
6:7).
Enter,
again, the little boy. I am not sure how
they found him. I am fairly certain the
only reason they mentioned him to Jesus was to underline the severity of the
situation. However, as he stood there he
heard Andrew say, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small
fish, but how far will they go among so many?” (John 6:9)
“How far
will they go among so many?” Have you
heard people ask that question recently?
People say,
“Well, I would help, but I am really not that good at teaching (or “singing” or
“encouraging” or… you fill in the blank), so what good could I do?”
We think, “If
I won the lottery, I would be generous.
But the twenty dollars in my wallet, how far would that go?”
“When I get
more time I will go and visit people and do things for others”. Unfortunately, we never seem to find more
time.
Thankfully,
the “Feeding of the 5000” is not just a past event. Rather, it teaches a Spiritual principle that
is at work even today: “No matter what we have to offer, large or small, if we
give it to God, he will use it and can multiply its effectiveness far beyond
what we could have imagined.”
Our job,
then, is to simply offer whatever we have, wherever we are, whenever we can. Stated another way, Tom Wood said, “Where you
are is where you are. Trust God and let
that be enough. Pour into what God has
given you now”.
Give what
you can give. Do the things you can
do. You may be shocked by what happens.
As one
little boy found out, when it is given to God, a little can be a lot.
Comments