Mark 6:41-44

Passage

Jesus took the food, looked to heaven, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples to hand out to the crowds.  He also divided up the fish.  Everyone ate and was satisfied.  When everyone was finished, they took up twelve baskets of leftover pieces of bread and fish.  There were about 5,000 people.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus took the food and looked up to heaven.  This may be a very simple point, but Jesus makes a point to look to God.  I’ve always wondered why people bow their head when they pray.  {I know the answer … it is a sign of humbleness.  I get that.}  But a few years back I started to occasionally look up to heaven when I pray sometimes.  After all, it is from heaven where I expect the source of help, love, and righteousness to come!  Now, I don’t mean to say that bowing our heads is wrong.  In no way is it wrong.  But occasionally I think it is good to remember when we pray we might as well look up, because we expect our answer to come from God!

Do you think it really matters which direction we point our head when we pray?  What it the most important aspect that we bring to prayer?  Why is it important to remember that it is through prayer that we are often most connected to God?  How can you help yourself to remember that God is our source of help, strength, hope, love, etc?

Second Thought:

Jesus broke up the food and handed it out to the disciples.  Again, imagine what they had to be thinking.  Sure, Jesus had blessed it.  But it was 5 loaves and 2 fish.  I bet they were preparing themselves for a major shortfall.  As we talked much about yesterday, they were still absolutely obedient.  Then everyone ate!  There was so much abundance that they had twelve baskets full.  The word basket here represents something about the size of a decent backpack.  5 loaves and 2 fish becomes a meal for 5,000 and 12 backpacks.  Not only did they feed an incredible amount of people – they were left with more pieces than they began with in total!

How does this passage speak to the abundance of God?  How do these verses talk to us about remembering that God is the source of our provision and physical needs? 

Third Thought:

The people not only ate, but they were satisfied.  They were fed, and fed to the point of feeling as though they had a meal.  They were nourished.  This wasn’t just some snack or some “hold-over-to-the-next-meal.”  This was a genuine eating to the point of satisfaction.

How do these verses talk about us remembering that God is also the true source of our satisfaction?  Do you really believe that the things with which God is involved will satisfy you more than the things with which God is not involved?  Does this play out in your life?

Passage for Tomorrow: Mark 6:45-47