Five loaves and two fish – that’s all it took to feed 5,000, and that doesn’t even include the women and children in the crowd.
And as a mom of five boys, I know how much kids can eat.
And, sadly, how much I can eat too! 😉
And yet, Jesus took those five loaves and two fish from whoever it was that handed over his lunch that day and performed a miracle. We don’t know who the disciples gathered the food from, but someone, or a few someones banded together, said,
“Hey, I don’t have much, but I got these loaves and fish.
You can have them if you think it’d do any good.”
I wonder what the tone of the person with the loaves and fish was.
Was he doubtful, looking over the crowd as it continued to grow among the hill?
Did his food, that seemed so wonderful for feeding his family, now look pitifully inadequate?
Did he shush his wife as she voiced her own doubts?
Did he simply shrug, thinking the disciples were crazy to even ask for it?
Was he mocking, did his eyebrow raise and his lip curl as he laughed humorlessly?
Did he elbow his friends and wink as he handed over his basket?
Did the disciples grit their teeth and ignore his jests?
Did he really feel that way or was he hopeful and afraid to admit it to others – or even to himself?
Was he reluctant, seeing the eyes of the hungry gathered around him, feeling the crowd pressing in close?
Did he hand over his food but want to keep it for himself?
Was that food all he had?
Were his children hungry at night?
Was he hopeful, was he hungry for food for his belly and nourishment for his soul?
Was he in a marriage that was shaky?
Was he treated badly by his employer?
Was he jobless? Homeless? Without family and Loved ones?
What became of him after that day?
Would You Have Shared Your Five Loaves and Two Fish?
How many times have we held onto our gifts, afraid they were not good enough to share or that there wouldn’t be enough to go around? How often have we felt that we should just keep our head down, our eyes averted, our thoughts to ourselves?
How many times have we held onto our treasures, afraid others would laugh at us or mock what little we are capable of? How often have we been afraid to hope, using sarcasm or denial rather than opening up and being vulnerable?
How many times have we looked at our gifts in disgust (like my boys would have looked at their fish!) and thought, “Who would possibly want what I can offer?”
What would have happened if the person who donated those loaves and fish had decided not to share?
How would the story have changed?
I am sure Jesus would have found another way to feed the multitude if He’d wanted to. Nothing is impossible for God, but He chose that person (or persons) to deliver their goods and that person chose to open himself up, become vulnerable, and change the story for thousands of years.
Sure, God can change the world without you, but don’t you WANT to be part of that change? Change requires risk, vulnerability, and, at times, rejection, but the Lord can use your risk to feed a multitude for generations if you are willing to share.
What is God Asking You to Share Today?
Would you have shared your loaves and fish or would you have kept them hidden away? What gifts do you have that you are holding onto, afraid of sharing, afraid of opening up about? What experiences or friendships have you kept hidden? How could you change your story by letting the secrets be shared? How could you change the world by changing your story?
God Bless…
