Loaves and Fishes
He gave what he had to Jesus, but it wasn’t really about the loaves and fishes it all.
After this Jesus went away to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, which is the Sea of Tiberias. And a large crowd was following him, because they saw the signs that he was doing on the sick. Jesus went up on the mountain, and there he sat down with his disciples. Now the Passover, the feast of the Jews, was at hand. Lifting up his eyes, then, and seeing that a large crowd was coming toward him, Jesus said to Philip, “Where are we to buy bread, so that these people may eat?” He said this to test him, for he himself knew what he would do. Philip answered him, “Two hundred denarii worth of bread would not be enough for each of them to get a little.” One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said to him, “There is a boy here who has five barley loaves and two fish, but what are they for so many?” Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” Now there was much grass in the place. So the men sat down, about five thousand in number. Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted. And when they had eaten their fill, he told his disciples, “Gather up the leftover fragments, that nothing may be lost.” So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.
John 6:1-13
Loaves and Fishes
All he had were a few pieces of bread and some fish. He was just a boy in a crowd, standing on a hillside to hear a preacher from Galilee. One in thousands who had been on that hillside for hours, all day really, and now people were hungry. He had only a bit of food, but as he pulled open his basket, people eyed its contents hungrily. He had a choice to make.
He could eat it all himself, and do so quickly before it was stolen from him.
He could try to divide it all up and pass out what he could to the few surrounding him.
Neither choice seemed very appealing, and certainly not satisfying as a solution to such a large need.
Then he saw the preacher’s apostle, Andrew, wandering through the crowd as if looking for someone, and suddenly he knew there was a third choice.
He offered his food, his meager resources, to the preacher.
A Crowd of Expectations
As I think of this story, I wonder why the boy gave that lunch to Jesus. Why hadn’t he eaten it yet? Why hadn’t he shared it with those around him? Why did he still have a full lunch basket at all? Was he late to the hill? Was he just passing by and got caught up in the crowd? Or had he been there all day and been so entranced by Jesus’s message that he forgot to eat, forgot he even had food with him?
We also stand in the middle of a crowd of expectations. Thousands of things look to us as if we have a resource they can’t live without. We are expected to be a good employee, a good spouse, a good parent, a good child to aging parents, a good sibling, a good friend, even a good pet owner. We have a church that expects certain things of its members, a country that expects things of its citizens. Sometimes just picking the appropriate outfit for the day is too overwhelming.
We have so many expectations on us in this life. We are expected to be good daughters, mothers, wives, employees, friends, neighbors, sisters, church members…even being a good citizen of our country can be an overwhelming task at times.
Overwhelmed with Expectations
So how do we cope with all of these expectations? We know we don’t have enough to satisfy everyone.
We feel overworked and overscheduled, leaving us overwhelmed and overwrought.
Just like the boy on the hillside, we have choices.
We can shut everyone out and only concern ourselves with our own needs.
We can spread ourselves thin trying to please everyone and get everything accomplished on our own. But either way, someone is going to be left out. Someone won’t be provided for. We are not big enough to be everything to everyone all at the same time.
And just like that boy on the hillside, we have a third choice.
Another Choice
He gave all his resources,such as they were, to Christ, and we can do the same.
He didn’t fuss at the fact that it was nothing compared to the need. He didn’t assume Jesus needed more help or direction with how to use the resources. He didn’t demand to know how Jesus was going to meet the need.
Lastly, there was nothing special about the boy himself. Jesus did not need him to be special or have some amazing talent. He didn’t need the boy to understand the people around him or to be a good speaker. He didn’t need him to have any kind of special characteristic. He didn’t need the boy to be perfect or to even be trying very hard.
He just needed the boy to hand him the lunch.
It wasn't really about the loaves and fishes… Share on XJesus Wants More than Loaves and Fishes
That’s it. Trust Christ enough to take a small resource and turn it into whatever He wanted to do with it.
And that’s really all Christ needs from you and me. Turn your resources over to Christ and let Him do what He wants with them.
He doesn’t need you to be perfect. He doesn’t need you to know how to connect with others in just the right way or for you to have some awesome talent in something spectacularly flashy. He doesn’t need you to be a good speaker or have a lot of money or to be wonderful in any way. He just needs you to trust Him to do what needs to be done with whatever you’ve been given.
Isn’t that wonderful?
Join the Conversation
How are you feeling overwhelmed today and how can you turn your resources over to Christ?
Candid Conversations
If you liked this blog post, you’ll also love our anthology, Candid Conversations. While each story shares a unique perspective, the prevailing theme is that while we all struggle, there is hope to be found in Jesus.
