Five Loaves And Two Fishes

John 6:9 – There is a lad here, which hath five barley loaves, and two small fishes: but what are they among so many? (KJV)

On a morning not unlike any other, a young man climbed out of his Jewish bed with visions and dreams of magic performed by an amazing Jewish miracle worker. Rumours had flown all over his small village that Jesus might be the long-awaited Messiah and the lad just had to see for himself. Imagine his mother searching the cupboard for just the right lunch to satisfy a gnawing hunger she knew her boy would feel before the desert sun crested its flight. Five barley loaves and two small fishes wrapped lovingly in a cloth bag and tucked away under a loose fitting tunic, "Enough for my boy and maybe a little to share with a friend," she thought.

Little did she or her boy imagine that this little morsel in the Master's hands was enough to feed a hungry throng of more than 5,000 individuals, whose curiosity also had driven them to our Lord. That day, the inexorable will and purpose of God, as an arrow straight and sure, crossed paths with a boy and his lunch bag. Jesus touched that small offering, blessed it and broke it into five thousand lunches. He — who made natural law — proved to all by that act that He was the Master of the physical world by overruling natural law. With the precious token of bread in His hand, He illustrated to all mankind, throughout all the ages, that He alone is the bread of life. He alone, who created life, is also the sustenance of life. He is our Manna from heaven, our daily bread.

What do we bring to the Master today? We may not think it is much. It may not count for much in this world, but Jesus sees beyond the physical. His is the big picture, seen with God's spiritual eyes. The will of the Father will be! He will take our small offering, bless it, and in His hands use it to teach a spiritual principle and touch a hurting world beyond all that we could ask or imagine. He is looking for our willingness to release what we have in our hands into his, to make it into something unimaginable, shining with the glory of God. Let us open our hands and hearts today to see if the small thing we have clutched so closely might be used by Jesus to bless a hurting and hungry world. He said, "If I be lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men unto me!" (John 12:32, KJV)

Prayer: Father, we bring to you today all we have and are. We recognize that you made the universe and you don't need our tiny loaves of bread, but you do need our love and worship. Help us to look beyond our own needs, to let you touch what we do have, so that it might bless and serve those you love around us. Help us to remember that every good and perfect gift is from above, your loving gift to us. Help our wills to be brought into line with your sure and perfect plan, so that the entire world may also know you as Lord and Saviour. In the blessed name of Jesus we ask. Amen.

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