“It’s not your job to feed the five thousand. You only need to provide the loaves and fishes.

  -quoted by Dallas Jenkins

I picture the crowds milling around Jesus and the disciples on that hillside. What were the thoughts of some of the people in that crowd? Did anyone look around thinking, “I’m sure hungry but I left the house in such a hurry when I heard that Jesus was coming by, I never thought about snacks for the journey!” Perhaps there were some people who had thought to grab something but, like the disciples, they looked at their pitifully small loaf of bread and said, “What is this among so many?” and quietly kept their lunch hidden in their pocket, ashamed to not be able to share.

Then one small innocent lad was brave enough, naïve enough, to offer what he had. That is what Jesus meant when He spoke of being childlike. It seems the boy didn’t stress about whether his menu would be suitable for feeding everyone. He didn’t try to figure out the logistics of getting the food to everyone on that hillside. He simply surrendered what he had at hand.

Pause a moment and really think about what happened there! When that small bit of provisions landed in Jesus’s hands, it quickly and miraculously multiplied and multiplied and multiplied some more!

We may look at our lives and wonder what we could possibly do for the Lord. We maybe don’t feel called to give all of our time or resources in this season of our life. But what if I offered what I do have? What could Jesus do with my little offering if I gave it to Him with no strings attached? We actually don’t need to figure out the logistics, and control where our offers are used. That’s none of our business. All we need to do is provide the loaves and fishes.

Did that small lad fret over what would happen to his own needs when he gave Jesus all of his lunch? Was he tempted to break off just a tiny piece to assuage his own empty stomach? I believe he gave it all! And in giving up everything, he was well filled along with the other thousands. When we can relinquish control of what we feel is ours- we’ve earned it, after all- we can be assured that Jesus will make the most of what we give. Perhaps it’s only one loaf and one fish. The Lord’s math doesn’t work like ours. He is not limited to figuring out how many people our one loaf will feed or how to stretch the resources so they go around. Let’s live with abandon, not hoarding our small bit of provisions, then watch what Jesus can do!

Ida Klassen