Will You Share?
God can do great miracles and His plan for you is far better than you could ask or think. If we want God's best we should desire His will. If you are committed to doing His will, then He has given you something to share. There are gifts and talents in each of us. They were given to us to share with others. You would be surprised to know of all the remarkable ways God could use you if you would be a willing vessel! So..........the question is Will you share?
Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberias), 2and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the miraculous signs he had performed on the sick. 3Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. 4The Jewish Passover Feast was near. 5When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, "Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?" 6He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do. 7Philip answered him, "Eight months' wages would not buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!" 8Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter's brother, spoke up, 9"Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?" 10Jesus said, "Have the people sit down." There was plenty of grass in that place, and the men sat down, about five thousand of them. 11Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish. 12When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, "Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted." 13So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. John 6:1-13
The feeding of the 5,000 is perhaps one of the most well-known stories in the Bible. Jesus’ ministry is well underway. He has made a name for himself. Some people really like him, others despise him, and the rest are still trying to figure him out. Jesus and his disciples are tired. They’ve been going non-stop. They head into the countryside for some rest and relaxation only to find crowds gathered to see more. It’s getting late and stomachs are beginning to rumble. There aren’t any stores around and even if there were eight months wages wouldn’t even be enough to feed everyone. What are they to do?
Have you ever been confronted with a need so great that it felt like nothing you could do would make a difference? I often feel this way when it comes to issues such as homelessness and poverty. I convince myself that the problem is too big for me to tackle and I often talk myself into a point of inaction. The feeling of hopeless often comes to me when I hear of someone who has just lost a family member or close friend to death. It’s so hard to figure out how to make things better for them. In truth there is nothing that I can do to change their situation and make the hurt go away, but I always say to myself “There must be SOMETHING that I can do.”
In the scripture passage today the disciples find themselves in one of these situations. Jesus, not worried of course, commands his disciples to search the crowd for provisions. They find an eight year old boy with five loaves and two fish. Jesus is pleased and prepares for the feast. You know how the story goes, ALL are fed and there’s even enough for leftovers! What catches my attention in this story is not the abundant feast, but the scarcity out of which it is given. That little boy didn’t have much to give, but he gave it all anyway. This reminds me that even though what I can offer may seem inadequate, God will increase if I am first willing to share. Whenever we find ourselves in situations too big for us to make a difference, picture in your head fives loaves and two fish and ask yourself, “What can I bring to the table?”
For more information
Rev. Leigh Martin
College Chaplain
Hasty Student Life Center, Room 308
lsm@reinhardt.edu
O: 770.720.5634
F: 770.720.9105
