Giving our Halves

Today our pastor gave a message on Matthew 14:13-21 (the feeding of the 5000).  The story begins with Jesus needing to go to a solitary place after hearing of the death of John the Baptist.  The crowd follows him and when Jesus sees them, it says, "he had compassion on them and healed their sick".  He did not send them away - no, he had compassion, he cared for them.  We heard that to have compassion means to "suffer with".

Today, Jesus calls us to be his hands and feet...we are the ones who need to see with his eyes and have compassion.  Sometimes that task seems overwhelming when there are so many who have needs. Sometimes the things we do to try to help don't seem like enough or we can get tired and feel like we don't have anything more to give.  What do we do?

There is a clue in the story of the feeding of the 5000.  Jesus told the disciples to feed all of the people and  the disciples reacted with "how?? We do not have enough food.  There are only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish...impossible!"  Pretty much how we would react, I dare say!  And yet Jesus gives this mission to the disciples and enables them.  He blesses the bread and fish and the disciples take the 'little' and end up passing the food around, feeding well over 5000 people and even have 12 baskets leftover!!

We often can feel like we have little to give, or we are too small or it won't be enough for all of the needs around us.  We only have "halves".   Jesus challenges us to use our "only halves" and to bless...to give the little we have to offer and let him worry about the results.

Did I ever need to be reminded of that today.  We may have little or may be small but we have a BIG God who will use the little we have to offer and will multiply and bless.  It is not about us, it's about God!

This message also reminded me of a prayer meeting 3 years ago with prayer people from several churches in a house overlooking Kelowna.  I felt very small and insignificant.  I did not feel at all confident and our church "The Well"  was a very small church compared to some of the churches represented there.  At one point in the meeting, one of the ladies shared scripture that she felt was for me and "The Well".  It was the story of Gideon in Judges 6. God had asked Gideon to save Israel out of Midian's hand.  Gideon replies with "But Lord,...how can I save Israel?  My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."  God answered, "I will be with you".   If you read the rest of the story you will see that God reduces Gideon's army down to only 300 and yet they do defeat the Midianites army of thousands.  Gideon was the least in his family, and his clan the smallest and yet because God was with him he was used mightily.  Another Gideon lesson, it took him a while to trust that God would work through him.  How like us too!  We too, often take some convincing that though we are small or have just a little to offer, if we just give what we have, use what we have and bless...God will work.  The disciples didn't think Jesus could feed the crowd with only 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish and Gideon didn't think someone like him could destroy the Midianites..but with God all things are possible!!