The sun was setting and the men decided it would be best if they sent the people in to the town to get food for themselves, since there was no food where they were. Then a very wise Man spoke up, "Don't send them away, give them food." They looked at the man as if He were crazy. "Give them food?!?!? Have you forgotten that we are in the middle of nowhere, that we have no food, and that there are over five thousand people here with us?"
Then a little boy walks up to one of the men and he tries to get his attention. "Excuse me, sir." He says it again and again, but is only ignored, then finally the man he is talking to turns. "Son, can't you see we are trying to solve a serious problem here?!?!" "I'm sorry, but I just wanted to give this," and he hands him his little lunch, "It's just five small loaves of bread and two small fishes that I brought along with me for lunch. It's not much, but it's all I have." Just to satisfy the young boy he took the lunch. "Sure, this will help. Five loaves and two fishes. I mean we only have a few thousand people to feed." He chuckles under his breath, while mocking the boy.
The wise Man comes back to see if they have solved the problem yet. "Did you figure out what we're going to do?" He asks. "I'm not sure," they say, "even if we had two-hundred pennyworths, it still wouldn't be enough money for food for all these people. The only thing we have so far is this." he says while gesturing to the lunch. "Some little boy came up to me and gave me his measly little lunch. I know it's ridiculous!"
The wise Man spoke up again. "Just make the people sit down, I'll take the lunch and handle this." Though puzzled at the crazy way this Man was acting they obeyed Him. Then the wise Man took the bread and He thanked the Father for it. Then He started break it into pieces. He started handing it to the men. The men who had mocked the little boy for bringing such a small lunch to them. Then the wise Man did the same thing with the fishes.
Every one there ate. Then the men went around with baskets and gathered up all the leftovers...and wow! There was an abundance of leftovers! Ever since that day this little boy who had seemingly nothing, this wise Man, who seemed crazy; and the men helping, who made fun of this little boys sacrifice have been talked about. It's a story that won't ever be forgotten.
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Two Sundays ago as I sat in church in Texas and listened to the pastor preach, he preached about this story -the feeding of the five thousand- you know, the one found throughout the gospels. As he preached my eyes became filled with tears, and while he spoke the warm tears streamed down my face.
{but why?}
Because of that boy. He was young. He was a nobody. He didn't have much. But what he did have, he gave. So I sat there and I listened and I became overwhelmed. Because...
{I'm a nobody}
{I don't have much}
{BUT, I can give}
and just like Jesus did with this boy's offering, He can use me in ways we could have never imagined-- and He wants to.
There were also some people that came to my mind during that sermon who need to know this story, and know it well. Those people would be "my" kids, the ones I teach and go to church with. They need to know that God can use the young ones, just like themselves.
Have you heard the headlines? One boy gives seemingly nothing- just five little loaves and two small fishes. They weren't much, but they were all he had, and God uses this boy and his lunch to feed over five thousand people, but more important than that he continues to use this boys story to change the lives of people thousands of years later.
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