Daily Verse: Luke 6:42-44

They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces of bread and fish. The number of the men who had eaten was five thousand.

 

In Chapter 6 of Luke, the disciples approach Jesus with a problem. The day is coming to a close and there are thousands of unfed people following Jesus and soaking in his teachings. These people need a meal to close out the day and the disciples come up with a logical, makes the most sense, conclusion…send the people out to the surrounding villages to basically fend for themselves. Let them take their own two feet and what money they have in their pockets and find their own meal. While the suggestion is logical and probably well thought out, it seems a bit cold-hearted…and cold-hearted and Jesus seem to be polar opposites. So Jesus makes a massive meal out of only a few fish and loaves of bread, feeding everyone and then some with 12 baskets of leftovers. What struck me from this passage that I had not seen before was Jesus’ love for the crowd. Instead of sending them out to fend for themselves, he provides MORE than what they need. I see this evident in our own lives today. We come to God with a problem and a well-mapped out, logical solution and God essentially tosses it out the window and replaces it with a better one. And often times that better plan knocks our socks off like it probably did for the disciples. I imagine they were shaking their heads in humbled amazement as they picked up the 12 baskets of leftovers. It at times like these where we really feel the awesome power of our God…where we are humbled for the road ahead and hopeful for what the Lord has in store for us. What a gift it is to have a God that provides so well for his children! To God be the glory!