Abundant Blessings
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Mark 6:7-13, 30-44
7. And he called to him the twelve, and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits. 8. He charged them to take nothing for their journey except a staff; no bread, no bag, no money in their belts; 9. but to wear sandals and not put on two tunics. 10. And he said to them, "Where you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 11. And if any place will not receive you and they refuse to hear you, when you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet for a testimony against them." 12. So they went out and preached that men should repent. 13. And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed them.
30. The apostles returned to Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. 31. And he said to them, "Come away by yourselves to a lonely place, and rest a while." For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. 32. And they went away in the boat to a lonely place by themselves. 33. Now many saw them going, and knew them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns, and got there ahead of them. 34. As he went ashore he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. 35. And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, "This is a lonely place, and the hour is now late; 36. send them away, to go into the country and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat." 37. But he answered them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?" 38. And he said to them, "How many loaves have you? Go and see." And when they had found out, they said, "Five, and two fish." 39. Then he commanded them all to sit down by companies upon the green grass. 40. So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. 41. And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. 42. And they all ate and were satisfied. 43. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. 44. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.
Old, familiar story. But this morning I instantly recognize the message of this “miracle.” First, Jesus sends his disciples out with no provisions, no extra clothing, no money. He wants them to trust that He is all they need -- his message, his love, and their faith in him. And when they return they excitedly recount to him all their adventures -- like 8-year olds home from a birthday party! I don’t mean to be condescending--those 12 men were so much like all of us, weren’t they? They were fishermen, tentmakers, tax collectors--quite a motley crew, indeed. They adored this man! They longed to be in his presence! They obeyed him to the very best of their ability but, often I’m sure, they went off shaking their heads--without one glimmer of understanding. But all that Christ required was obedience. And they tried mightily!
And Jesus wanted them to know, deep in their hearts--to their very core--that once he was gone from their presence on earth, he would still provide for them--after all--he told them (and us!) to ask God for anything in his name and it would be granted! Jesus, over and over again, demonstrated that God’s abundance was in proportion to his power and might, his majesty and his love. None of which we can even fathom! None of which we could ever approach!
Jesus is compassionate toward us today, just as he was toward that throng of hurting, needy souls who sought him and followed him around, hoping for merely a touch of the hem of his garment. If only they, and we, would understand that when we ask God for something we ought not to limit the reward he wants to give us. We ask him to give us a new job, but one never materializes. Rather, when we ask Him to let us know if this is the job where he wants us -- for a reason only He may know -- we get a raise, or a transfer, or a promotion, or a call for a job interview with another company. The apostles didn’t understand that Jesus could provide so much more than what was right in front of them. And we miss that too! We ask God to heal us of our chronic pain, but miss the opportunity to ask him to heal the strained and difficult relationship with a family member or co-worker. If we ask merely for healing in our lives--according to God’s will and purpose--we will certainly find prayers answered far beyond what we anticipated!
Ask and ye shall receive. Seek and Ye shall find. Knock and the door shall be opened. Don’t limit God! Ask for His bounty, His blessings, His love. He will shower them all down upon you! You won’t believe how wonderful your life will be. And even if things don’t seem to work out the way you would like them to here on earth--never forget that God waits for us in heaven at the end of time!
I hope and pray that on this Memorial Day, you thank God for the blessing of Freedom. And that you never limit the pouring out of blessings in your life, by limiting God.
Mary
