John 6:1-15
Be Still: Jesus our Redeemer, please transform my heart and my mind through your Word today. Amen
Read: John 6:1-15
Philip answered him, ‘It would take more than half a year’s wages to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!’ … So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten. (vv 6,7,13)
Encounter: If I am presented with a problem, I will try to solve it, but I will also point out all the issues along the way. Similarly, if someone else proposes a solution, I will point out all the issues with their suggestion. I imagine it’s deeply annoying, but it’s just who I am!
Phillip, in today’s passage, is like me. He is a practical, but slightly pessimistic problem-solver. When Jesus asks him what they should do about all these hungry people, Phillip tells Jesus the problem with the problem - it’s going to cost a lot of money, and even then, they’ll all barely have anything to eat. Jesus follows his own plan - and everyone has enough AND they’ve got twelve baskets of leftovers!
We may often bring our own needs before Jesus with the same practical, slightly pessimistic style as Philip. We might ask for something, but we’re practical and realistic about it. Like Phillip, we can so easily forget who we’re with and what he can do!
I love that in this story we see how God provides -- he is a God of abundance, not scarcity. He can provide for everyone to have enough and with leftovers! He doesn’t offer a bite, or the bare minimum or only what we need to survive -- he goes above and beyond. It might not look how we expect or had in our heads, but God does care for his children lavishly and abundantly.
Apply: What do you need from Jesus today? Ask him and remember who you’re asking! Choose to trust in his abundance and goodness, instead of your reality. Or do you, like Phillip, simply need him to remind you of his miraculous power? Do you need him to remind you that he is good, and he does provide for you?
Devote: Father God, remind me today that you are a God of abundance and plenty. I’m sorry for where I have been pessimistic or far too practical, instead of trusting in your miraculous power. I present my problems to you today and ask that you would go above and beyond.
