THE STORY OF JESUS: Matthew 14:13-21
“You give them something to eat.” (Matthew 14:16)
I sit with someone in financial crisis, they tell me about all their unpaid bills.
They don’t ask, but I know they are desperate for help, for hope.
And I hear a voice in my heart say, ‘you help them, you give them something!’
But I ignore that voice because it does not make sense.
They need more than the small amount that I can offer.
Justifications flash through my mind, excuses for not doing something.
‘I only have here 5 toonies and 2 loonies, it is not enough!’
I notice here that Jesus does not question the amount, he receives it with thanks.
Yes, God sends us here to help, to do what we can, not what we can’t.
He receives our insufficient yet sincere offerings of self with thanks.
He is able to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine.
A lady calls me for help with her husband, at that moment I can only offer prayer.
Next day she thanks me – she and her husband prayed together and had a breakthrough!
She was ecstatic, and I was surprised, based on how bad things seemed yesterday.
God can multiply our limited resources with His infinite resources.
But we have to be willing to do what we can, even if it seems inadequate.
Too often I leave such situations overwhelmed and defeated.
Why not do something, anything, and offer it to God with faith, hope and love.
Wait and see how God will ‘satisfy’ their needs in ways we can’t imagine.
Today if you meet a situation to which the Lord says, ‘you do something…’
Offer what you can, no matter how small, with thanks to God, and see what He can do!
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, oh me of little faith. Thank You for patiently using me, and stretching me little by little into Your trusting friend and partner with God.