2.23.9 "You Feed Them!"

"You Feed Them!"

Leviticus 14:1-57
Mark 6:30-56
Psalm 40:1-10
Proverbs 10:11-12

The feeding of the 5000 is a story that is familiar to many of us. Either from the pictures when we were kids, or just our own imaginations we can visualize the scene. The little boy, the loaves & fish, the 12 basketfuls left over. As we look at this today, lets look at it from an angle you might not have taken before. This is a story unfolding the principles of Responsibility found in Active Ministry Involvement.

"Then Jesus suggested, 'Let's get away from the crowds for a while and rest.' For so many people were coming and going that they scarcely had time to eat." (Mark 6:31) If I was one of the disciples, I would have been "YESS!!! finally a bit of R&R! We NEED this!"

"So they left by boat for a quieter spot. But many people saw them leaving and ran on ahead along the shore and met them as they landed. So the usual vast crowd was there as he stepped from the boat; and he had pity on them... and he taught them many things they needed to know." (vs. 32-34)

GREAT! all these people messing with our vacation!

"Late in the afternoon his disciples came to him and said, 'Tell the people to go away to the nearby villages and farms and buy themselves some food, for there is nothing to eat here in this desolate spot, and it is getting late.'

"But Jesus said, 'You feed them.' 'With what?' they asked. 'It would take a fortune to buy food for all this crowd!' 'How much food do we have?' he asked. 'Go and find out.'" (vs. 35-38)

You know what happens next. They found 5 loaves & 2 fish & Jesus had the crowd sit in groups, and took the food they had in his hands, blessed it and gave it to the disciples to hand out.

"And the crowd ate until they could hold no more! There were about 5000 men there for that meal, and afterwards twelve basketfuls of scraps were picked up off the grass!" (vs. 42-44)

Here are some points that we can take from this:

1. Rest is important, but it's not the main objective. The disciples had just come from ministering, and Jesus knew they needed rest. HOWEVER, rest doesn't always come WHEN we think we need it. Many times the miracle is when we go just a little farther. I believe so many people quit before the miracle. Jesus and the disciples had every "right" to say, "we're too tired to minister to you. Don't call me on my day off." But that isn't what happened. They ministered. If you spend ever day ministering/working with your next vacation day or day off as the main thing on your mind, you're missing the point!

2. You see the need for a reason. They were on their way to rest when the need presented itself. Seeing the need, they bring it to the attention of their leader. In my words, it's "Leader, there's a need here, and you should do something." What I notice here today is Jesus saying, in my words, "You are right. There is a need here. The reason you are seeing this need is that I have placed this burden on your heart because I plan to use YOU to meet the need!" I wish I had a nickel for every time someone came to me with their burden they would like me to fix. I don't want to be hypocritical because I also have gone to my leaders wanting them to fix my burden. Jesus says, "You feed them."

3. It never seems like there's enough to do it. When Jesus tells them to meet the need, they say, "With what?" It seems impossible. So many people stop here. They're intimidated by the need and their own realization of inadequacy, and they bail. They stop there.

4. Take inventory of what you DO have. Jesus instructs them to "go and find out" what resources they have available. There are a million things we don't have that can give us an "excuse" to stop before the miracle. Jesus isn't asking us to list what we are deficient in, he's asking us for what we DO have. What are our resources? Do the spiritual gifts inventory. Take an assessment survey or your passions and experiences and abilities. Look at what IS available.

5. Put what you have in the Lord's hands. There's an amazing thing that happens when Jesus takes what we have and puts his blessing on it. It multiplies it far beyond what we can imagine. Putting it in his hands can be harder than it sounds. We really like to use "our" gifts "our" way. To give it to him, we need to give it to him without terms. "Lord, do whatever you want to do with what I have." What he wants to do with it is usually not what we expect. That's ok. It all his anyway!

6. When it's all done, hang around for cleanup! Don't overlook the part where it says, "twelve basketfuls of scraps were picked up off the grass!" This ministry did not end with the "high fives" of the disciples talking about how great that miracle was. They stuck it out until the task was totally completed. This is how we show true responsibility in using our gifts for the Lord.

Active Ministry Involvement is far more than joining a group. It's taking responsibility for the time, talents and resources that God has given us, placing it back in his hands, and being a faithful steward of it all. This includes what you do at your workplace. It includes what you do at home. "You feed them!"

As I look at all this today, I must ask myself, "Active Ministry Involvement... AM I?"



Through the Power of the Spirit,
Live the DREAM!

P Greg


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