The church's community food
pantry was almost empty.
Only a few cans
and boxes remained.
The monthly trip to
the food bank had only provided enough food for a couple of weeks and the money
in the offering barely covered that bill.
Even though there was little food, people continued to come asking for
help, continued to worry about money, and continued to lose their jobs.
Will everyone who needed help receive it?
Were the needs of the people too big for
God?
Would God provide as the economy
remains unstable?
John 6:1-15 talks about how the disciples were also faced with the hunger of large numbers of
people. Philip saw the great masses of
people and believed that the problem was too big. Andrew saw the five loaves and two fishes and
believed that they didn't have enough to solve the problem.
When we look at John
6, we see that Jesus used this opportunity to demonstrate to his disciples that
God would provide. He didn't try to tell
them about God's abilities. He had
everyone sit down and he blessed the food that was there. After everyone had eaten, Jesus had the
remaining bread collected so that all could see how much more was left
over. He authenticated what God had done
by physically showing how much more God had given than was needed.
I am reminded of the
folktale, "Stone Soup," where as individual ingredients are added to
the cooking pot until eventually a community soup is made. We may not start off with an entire soup, but
each of us has a bit of onion or carrot that can be added to create the soup.
The director of the food pantry uses the collected money
to buy 3 to 4 times as much food at the food bank. The volunteers harvest bushels of vegetables
from the community garden after planting tiny seeds. The local supermarkets donate produce and
baked goods which are approaching their expiration dates.
A month ago an anonymous donor filled the shelves of MCC Lubbock's food pantry
just as the last bags were being given out.
In another life, I would have called this result "Luck," but
experience tells me that God is at work. Someone took what s/he had and allowed God to multiply it into baskets of loaves and fishes. Thanks be to God.
When I met Abuela and several other grandparents at a support group for grandparents raising grandchildren, I was introduced to people who lovingly brought their grandchildren into their homes rather than allow them to go into the foster care system. With the reality of raising grandchildren came the realization that they would not receive financial or emotional assistance from Child Protective Services (CPS) that foster parents get. Often trying to stretch income to provide for additional bodies is more than the grandparents can handle. They make decisions based on what is an absolute necessity and what becomes a luxury item.
I am reminded of the
folktale, "Stone Soup," where as individual ingredients are added to
the cooking pot until eventually a community soup is made. We may not start off with an entire soup, but
each of us has a bit of onion or carrot that can be added to create the soup.
My grandma believed with every fiber of her body that she would win Publisher's Clearinghouse Sweepstake. She bought magazines of every topic and cost. Sometimes she even ordered the same magazine twice. Grandma filed everything she got from them and kept detailed records. She often told me that people from Publisher's Clearinghouse had called to tell her that if she only bought a few more magazines she would definitely win. And she KNEW that someday she would win the Big Sweepstakes. They would come and with that huge check, Grandma's worries would be over.
God. Other times I laughingly tell God of the wonderful things happening in my life. Although God knows all of these things, by sharing God and I are forming a connection that can survive through difficult times.
