Have Faith

That evening the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late.  Send the crowds away so they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves." But Jesus said, "That isn't necessary - you feed them."  "But we have only five loaves of bread and two fish!" they answered.  "Bring them here," he said.  Then he told the people to sit down on the grass.  Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them.  Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, he gave the bread to the disciples, who distributed it to the people.  They all ate as much as they wanted, and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftovers.  About 5,000 men were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children!  Matthew 14:15-21

I love the power of our awesome God and Savior.  There is NOTHING too hard for Him.  He is so faithful to us.  When He calls us to something He provides us with what we need to do His work.  He told his disciples to feed the people.  They must have looked at Him like He was crazy.  You want us to feed all of these people with only 5 loaves of bread and two fish?  He says, Yes.  That is more than enough.

So often we look at situations that God calls us to and say, "You want me to do that?  I don't have enough to do that."  He looks at us and knows that what little we have is more than enough with His power.  I pray that in faith we will be able to look towards God when He calls us to do what we might believe is impossible and say, "Lord I don't have much, but what I do have I give it ALL to you.  I trust that with You it can be more than enough."

What baffles me even more about the disciples, and scares me that I am just like them, is that in the next chapter of Matthew the same situation comes up and they question again how they will feed so many people.

Then Jesus called his disciples and told them, "I feel sorry for these people.  They have been here with me for three days, and they have nothing left to eat.  I don't want to send them away hungry, or they will faint along the way."  The disciples replied, "Where would we get enough food here in the wilderness for such a huge crowd?"  Jesus asked, "How much bread do you have?"  They replied, "Seven loaves, and a few small fish."  So Jesus told all the people to sit down on the ground.  Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, thanked God for them,  and broke them into pieces.  He gave them to the disciples, who distributed the food to the crowd.  They all ate as much as they wanted.  Afterward, the disciples picked up seven large baskets of leftover food.  There were 4,000 men who were fed that day, in addition to all the women and children.  Matthew 15:32-38

I feel like Jesus gives them a chance to remember what He did just one chapter before.  He gives them a chance to say we have seven loaves of bread and a few fish, we know that is more than enough for you to feed them with.  He gives them a chance to remember how He has provided in the past.  He gives them a chance to say, we don't have much but we trust that if we give it to you that it is more than enough.  But instead they say, "Where would we get enough food here in the wilderness for such a huge crowd?"  I wonder if Jesus gets a little frustrated here with his disciples.  Had they already forgotten how He had fed 5,000+ with just 5 loaves and 2 fish not that long ago?

Now there are less people and even more food than the first feeding, yet the disciples forget the faithfulness and power of their Good Teacher.  Sometimes I think we can relate with the disciples.  How many times have we seen the faithfulness and provisions of our awesome God yet we forget what He has done for us?  We are faced with a situation where we think we don't have enough to be able to handle it, and all we need to do is turn to Him and say, "Lord I don't have much, but what I do have I give it ALL to you.  I trust that with You it will be more than enough."  How many times do we try to fix everything on our own and then turn to prayer as a last resort, instead of turning to God before we do anything on our own?

I pray that I will remember all that my Savior has provided for me and have faith.  I pray that I will turn first to Him before I do anything else.  I pray that I will bring what I have to the feet of my Jesus and say, "I don't have much, but what I do have I give it ALL to you.  I trust that with You it is more than enough."  I pray that I will never forget the power of my awesome God.  I pray that I will have faith in Him in ALL circumstances.

Now all glory to God, who is able, through His mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.  Glory to him in the church and in Christ Jesus through all generations forever and ever! Amen.  Ephesians 3:20-21