Leftovers

Anyone who knows me know that I do not like to eat leftovers. It is painful for me to have to survive on the same dish for several meals in a row. OK, so that may be overstating things, but I would definitely prefer to eat cereal for dinner than leftovers. I know. I get bored so easily that I struggle with leftovers. That seems a bit ridiculous but there it is, none the less.

The other day, I was perusing through my Facebook page, as I often do, and a friends status jumped out at me. She had written down John 6:12-13 as her status. I couldn't tell you what the rest of her status said, but the following stood out: "After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, 'Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.' So they picked up the pieces and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the people who had eaten from the five barley loaves."

These verses, of course, come from the feeding of the 5000+--one of the most well known stories from Jesus' ministry. As I sat there, letting my mind ponder the depths of these verses, I kept thinking how amazing it is--out of so little given, there was so much left over. And that is how it is in my life.

When I look at my life, I stress out so much over the bills (sometimes rightly so!), over having "enough," or running out of something that I forget this one truth: God can make a meager scrap go beyond my wildest imaginings, with leftovers.

Earlier in John 6, the story tells of Jesus asking Phillip where they can get enough bread to provide for the huge crowd that followed them. Jesus already knew of the offering that was being brought forward and the pure heart of the child who was offering it to him. Jesus wanted to see what Phillip's reaction was going to be. And guess what?! Phillip's reaction was exactly what mine would have been--he said (v. 7), "Even if we work for months, we wouldn't have enough money to feed them." Phillip looked at the situation with the perspective of an overwhelmed (and probably harried!) provider. He seems a bit of a pessimist, if you ask me!

Andrew was a little better, though not much! Andrew brings the child to Jesus with the 5 loaves and 2 fish, but says (v. 9), "There's a young boy here with five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that with this huge crowd?" Andrew brought a solution to his Lord, but didn't have the faith to see beyond the physical limitations. If Phillip is a defeatist, then Andrew is more of a realist.

I look at the reaction of Phillip and Andrew and can't help but wonder of their reactions are our most common reactions we have when we come across a seemingly insurmountable problem. Do we react with defeat and wonder how God can turn what I am holding into enough, like Phillip? Or, do we look at the world through the eyes of Andrew and see the physical limitations of what we have to offer?

Jesus, knowing how both Phillip and Andrew would react, took the small offering and gave thanks with a humble heart. John doesn't go into the prayer Jesus prayed, but I am fairly certain it was heart felt and genuine. After he gave thanks, Jesus instructed the disciples to pass out the food to the people on the hill. Can you imagine the looks of shock on the disciples faces as they got to the end of the rows, expecting an empty basket, but finding a basket that was full, none the less? Priceless, I am sure.

Then, when Jesus asked the disciples to go and gather what was left over, they found that there was more left over than there was to begin with. I bet there were a lot of minds blown that day.

In my life, when I look at what I have been blessed with--my meager 5 loaves and 2 fish, how do I react? Do I worry and stress out over the limitations of what I have been given? Do I show God what I have but not trust in His ability to make it enough? Or do I humbly pray, offering my genuine thanks for the blessings I am holding, and ask God to make it enough?

I don't need to worry about how to make my dollar go a bit further, or how to make my time last long. By praying with thankfulness and through faith, instead of struggling to be self-sufficient, God can make a meager scrap go beyond my wildest imaginings, with leftovers. Thankfully. Blessedly. Assuredly.