Putting Pieces Together

"Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. ⁴²They all ate and were satisfied, ⁴³and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. ⁴⁴The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand." Mark 6:41-44

Can I ask a question today? Maybe not even a real question, but more of a what-if question. In the book of Mark, Jesus feeds a multitude out of nothing twice. The first time he feeds five-thousand, the second time he feeds four-thousand, and both times there were leftovers. As I read this above, I thought about these twelve baskets of leftover pieces of bread and fish, and the most absurd thought came to me- what if those pieces were put back together? What if they took all those pieces that were remaining and assembled them back into fish and loaves- how many more loaves and how many more fish would they have than the two and five they started with?

Talk about incorrect math! Talk about something completely illogical, and yet, except for the actual reassembling of the loaves and fishes, that's really what happened. There is something completely illogical- yet wonderful about God multiplying the loaves and fishes. It's something that is also completely impossible for man to do on his own. Yet with God's help, all things are possible! Jesus started with five loaves of bread and two fish, and in the end, after five-thousand men had eaten, there was more leftover than when they started.

I'm expecting the exact same thing from God. As one by one pieces of our lives are broken off and consumed, the pieces that are left are going to be more than what we began with. The pieces that are being broken off right now are the pieces that are a distraction- the pieces that are taking our focus away from God. When all is said and done, when the bad pieces are finished being removed, what remains is going to be gathered together, and there is going to be so much more there than when we first began. He who began a good work in us will see it to completion.

"being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." Philippians 1:6

I'm excited! And as each piece is being broken off and cast away, we are getting closer to God, as what remains are the parts that will best be used to glorify Him. I can't wait to see the final picture when all the pieces are put back together- the final reassembly is going to be awesome!