Friends
How are you on this Monday morning? Are you feeling content and comfortable? Perhaps words like overwhelmed, frustrated, or fearful provide a better description of your mental state. Long ago, Jesus’ disciples were feeling stressed and over-wrought, and Jesus used the moment for a powerful lesson that we can still learn from today. Let’s take one more look at this story and see what Jesus has to teach us today.
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“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
Philippians 4:13 – NKJV
Have you ever been “hangry”? That’s a word reserved for those challenging moments when we are downright cranky because we are so hungry. We can’t even think straight because our blood sugar levels have plummeted so low. It feels awful to feel that way, and it’s equally awful to be around someone who is feeling that way. Can I get an “Amen”?
That’s how I imagine the disciples were feeling on that hilltop as they stood in a cluster near Jesus. The sun was inching toward the horizon, and breakfast was a long time ago. They had no food stash to raid, no snack mix in their knapsacks. It was past time to be searching for their suppers, and Jesus was still busy addressing the crowd. I can hear their thoughts, can’t you? “Come on, Jesus! We’re hungry! It’s time to go!”
Not only were the disciples hungry, but the thousands of folks in the field in front of them were hungry too. The disciples were hangry, the people were hangry, and still, Jesus kept on speaking.
No doubt, the twelve were eyeing each other and grumbling, “There’s no way we can feed all these people. We better send them away for the night. It’s time to get a move on and find some food before we lose the daylight.”
But Jesus was oblivious to their rumbling stomachs, totally unperturbed by the lack of supper plans. Or was He?
“But Jesus said, “You feed them.”“With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money to buy food for all these people!” “How much bread do you have?” he asked. “Go and find out.”They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish” (Mark 6:37-38, NLT).
To the disciples in their famished state, it no doubt seemed Jesus was being unreasonable, even dense. Couldn’t He see that there were no resources here? But to Jesus, this was a perfect opportunity to teach His friends a three-step plan for dealing with stressful situations.
First, Jesus instructed His friends to assess the situation. Second, He told them to gather their resources, and third, bring what they found to Him.
“Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred. Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share. They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed” ( Mark 6:39-44, NLT).
The twelve brought Jesus what they had, and He blessed it. What was insufficient became more than sufficient, what was not enough became abundant.
The disciples cried “We can’t!” But Jesus said “I can!” In their human strength, they couldn’t cope with the situation, but when they took their concerns and offered their efforts to Jesus, He turned a mess into a miracle.
What seems impossible to us is more than possible for Jesus. He can turn our “Can’t” into “Can.” He can make a way where there seems to be no way.
Friends, what is on your list of “Can’t” today? Let this miracle story remind you of Jesus’ three-step approach to leading a less-stressed life. Assess the situation. Gather your resources. Take it all to Jesus.
In our humaness, we can’t, but in His godliness, Jesus can. That’s the miracle Jesus offers us. It’s finding peace amid the chaos, knowing joy in the midst of adversity, clinging to hope even when all seems losT. Friends, embrace this truth, speak it out loud: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13, NKJV).
PRAYER
Lord Jesus, we are often so weary, so burdened, so overwhelmed. We are stuck in a vicious cycle. We want to make positive changes for our physical and spiritual health, but the demands of life derail us off track. We try and fail, again and again. Help us to break this cycle by bringing you our desire to make changes and receiving your blessing on our efforts. We know with you, all things are possible. Thank you Lord!
In the Mighty Name of Jesus, we pray,
Amen
Blessings,
Anita
-APS 3/4/2024
Faith Beyond Sight 