He Never Disappoints

"He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to set before the people, and they did so. 7They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. 8The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over." Mark 8:6-8

I love reading the stories of Jesus feeding crowds of people with nothing. Every time I read one of the accounts it puts a huge smile on my face. There are so many things in the Bible that we read them and we wish we had been there to see that event in person- this is my event. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall, watching that bread divide and divide again, and then to have so much extra leftover at the end! Food is one of those things that we all need to live- there's no way around it. And God always provides necessary nourishment for His children when we need it.

I can't tell you how many times I've experienced this very miracle myself. With our group meeting at our home every week for a meal, you would think that we would go through a lot of groceries and use up our stores very quickly. Yet each and every time that I look at what I've prepared, and wonder if it will be enough, it ends up being more than plenty- and then we end up eating leftovers of it for half the week to follow even. I also love how God places it on my heart to make someones favorite food. It happens quite often that I'll prepare dinner only to have one person mention later on how such and such is their favorite, and they've been wanting it for awhile.

I guess it's really about the spirit of sharing. Each week we practice the hospitality that God has blessed us with, and there's nothing better than sharing what God has given us. There have been weeks where I have looked at the grocery budget and just shook my head. By the time I planned out our Sunday dinner, there wasn't much left budget-wise for other groceries. We've trusted God nonetheless. The Sunday groceries came first, and every single time, God's come through in a big way. And he doesn't always come through in the same way- that's been kind of fun. Sometimes he lays it on someones heart to drop off a bag of groceries. Sometimes there is so much leftover Sunday that we could eat for the entire week off the leftovers. Sometimes we'll find extra cash hiding somewhere so we can pick up a few extra groceries. And sometimes God will just completely bless us in a way that we know only came from Him. We trust God by continuing to be generous with what he has given us. Jesus and His disciples could have very easily fed themselves and ignored all those people around them. Instead, they prayed and shared with the spirit of generosity, and that spirit was blessed to the utmost. Five loaves of bread and two fish fed 5,000 people. God provided for each and every one of those people, and he will continue to provide for our family.