God of Life

God of The Invisible

The God of Abraham - Part 6

Sunday, October 8, 2023
Genesis 22:1-18

The messenger said, “Don’t stretch out your hand against the young man, and don’t do anything to him. I now know that you revere God and didn’t hold back your son, your only son, from me.”  Abraham looked up and saw a single ram caught by its horns in the dense underbrush. Abraham went over, took the ram, and offered it as an entirely burned offering instead of his son. Abraham named that place “the Lord sees.”  That is the reason people today say, “On this mountain the Lord is seen.”

Genesis 22:12-14

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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Perhaps one of the most difficult and gut-wrenching passages of scripture is the famous story of God asking Abraham to kill his son Isaac as a human sacrifice to prove his loyalty and faithfulness.  And of course, as a man whose faith is credited to him as righteousness, he willingly offers his beloved child up to die.

Yes, we know the end of the story.  We know how God spared the boy and sent the ram.  There are volumes of theological texts explaining how God sent a ram instead of a lamb because the lamb would be his own son, Jesus, who would willingly give his life as a ransom for sin. 

I don’t want to diminish God’s faithfulness to Isaac or the redemptive work of Jesus in his own sacrificial love, but if we’re really honest, none of these outcomes are sufficient to help us process what to do with a God who would ask such a thing in the first place.  Yes, Abraham lived in a different culture and time, but to simply say OK to some mysterious voice in the sky who tells you to kill your child and assume that voice comes from a loving God is not something most rational human parents would do. 

In Abraham’s culture, human sacrifice was not uncommon.  It would not be surprising for him to assume that such a sacrifice would be required as a faithful response to God’s blessing.  But instead of accepting the sacrifice, God steps in to definitively put an end to this whole ordeal.  “Do not stretch your hand out against him.”  Throughout the prophets God rejects the sacrifices of his people, declaring that he seeks mercy, justice, and humility rather than violence and bloodshed. 

What if the question or “test” is: “Would you make the same offering to me, your God, as the Canaanites make to their gods?”  Or to look at it another way, what do we do when what we are sure God is calling us to do actually runs counter to God’s character?  Is it possible that when we use God’s word to do harm, that we have misunderstood or misused God’s word?

It's easy to take everything God “says” in scripture at face value, but if we’re honest, we put words into God’s mouth all the time. We take a particular view on an issue and find verses to support it, claiming God’s absolute agreement with our position.  What if the Biblical writers did too?  What if they were doing the best with what they had, trying to paint Abraham as absolutely loyal and faithful as possible in the only way that would be expected according to their cultural norms?  But then God steps in and writes a different story. 

When we look at God through the lens of Jesus, we see a God who will do anything to re-write the human story of violence and death.  No matter what scripture may appear to say at first glance, God is always a God of life!

God of the Sinner

God of The Sinner

The God of Abraham - Part 5

Sunday, October 1, 2023
Genesis 18:16-33

The men turned away and walked toward Sodom, but Abraham remained standing in front of the Lord.  Abraham approached and said, “Will you really sweep away the innocent with the guilty  What if there are fifty innocent people in the city? Will you really sweep it away and not save the place for the sake of the fifty innocent people in it?  It’s not like you to do this, killing the innocent with the guilty as if there were no difference. It’s not like you! Will the judge of all the earth not act justly?”

The Lord said, “If I find fifty innocent people in the city of Sodom, I will save it because of them.”

 - Genesis 18:22-26

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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People are quick to use the story of Sodom & Gomorrah as a condemnation of entire people groups with whom they disagree.  When Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, several so called Christian TV personalities claimed it was God’s judgment upon the city because they allowed the sins of Sodom to run rampant.    Even then, I  found the picking and choosing ironic, as I had lived through several devastating hurricanes in Florida and no one claimed God’s judgment on our small town. 

There is much we can learn from these infamous cities in Genesis, but this claim of divine wrath over some particular sin is not it.  In fact, God explicitly declares the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah through the prophet Ezekiel and it’s not at all what most people think.

This is the sin of your sister Sodom: She and her daughters were proud, had plenty to eat, and enjoyed peace and prosperity; but she didn’t help the poor and the needy (Ezekiel 16:49).

This is an age old story about pride, greed, inhospitality, rejection of the poor, and even violence toward those on the margins.  It’s a story that is repeated in every empire and nation throughout history as power becomes more and more corrupt.  Those in power will do anything to stay in power, even Christians.  How much harm has the church done throughout the centuries and even in our own day just to maintain some degree of cultural dominance, influence, and comfort?

The bigger question for today, however, is how we might respond to sinners less like a judge, jury and executioner rolled into one, and more like Abraham in his conversation with God, especially since we ourselves are among those sinners, no matter how righteous we think we are.

Abraham pleaded for mercy on this corrupt city, even for the sake of only 50 good people.  Eventually he went all the way down to 10.  He didn’t ask that only the righteous ones be protected, but that the whole city be saved for the sake of those few.  We might argue that God destroyed them anyway so it doesn’t matter, but notice that God shared Abraham’s heart for the guilty and innocent alike.  God did not argue with Abraham.  God was readily willing to extend mercy.  God wanted to show mercy. 

There is of course far more to this story, but for now let us consider two key points.

1. God desires mercy and wants us to desire mercy.

2. It only takes a few faithful people to save an entire city.  10 people is not some magic number, as though there were only 9 so the city had to burn.  Rather, it reminds us that every little bit of faithful love makes a difference. 

Seeing sinners through the eyes of love and mercy can truly transform the world.

God of the Stranger

God of The Invisible

The God of Abraham - Part 4

Sunday, September 24, 2023
Genesis 18:1-15; 21:1-7

So Abraham hurried to Sarah at his tent and said, “Hurry! Knead three seahs of the finest flour and make some baked goods!”  Abraham ran to the cattle, took a healthy young calf, and gave it to a young servant, who prepared it quickly.  Then Abraham took butter, milk, and the calf that had been prepared, put the food in front of them, and stood under the tree near them as they ate.

 - Genesis 18:6-8

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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Three strangers are traveling near Abraham’s desert camp in the heat of the day.  He has no idea who they are, or what their intentions might be.  Could they be hostile?  Could they be criminals or escaped slaves?   Could they be outcasts because of a highly contagious disease?  Who knows?  The only thing that matters to Abraham is that God has called him to care for the stranger, just as he was cared for when he himself was a stranger in this new land.

We don’t generally have strangers in need walking by our homes or our churches, so the question is, what does it look like to extend this kind of hospitality today?  In Laura Buchanan’s article on umc.org, “Hospitality tips for the 21st century,” we find just a few suggestions to get us started, especially when it comes to showing hospitality as a church.

1. Make a personal connection

   Sit beside people, ask them how they are.  Learn their story.  Ask questions.  Build relationships… Don’t be aggressive.  Learn about them rather than trying to get them to come to all of your activities.

2. Learn to be a guest 

   People don’t naturally come to church.  We have to go to them in the  community.  Ask yourself, “Who do I hang out with every week?  What do we do together?  Where do I spend a lot of time outside of church?”  What if those  relationships became a form of church?  What if we created community wherever  we go?

3. Find spaces to build relationship

   Evaluate your life, interests, where you find yourself in the community on a regular basis.  Don’t think you already know the community or the people you are talking to.  Come in as a  learner… be a learner of people, a learner of your community.  Let the place and the people teach you.

4. Rethink evangelism

   Simply inviting people to church is not evangelism.  We must listen, love, and serve people.  Find out how to do things together.  Build relationships slowly over time.  When little spiritual openings come up in conversation, you can share your faith. You can offer to pray for people.  You can form little faith communities within your everyday relationships. 

Hospitality is about creating friendships with people who don’t go to church, not just about how we welcome people when they come to church. 

Authenticity is key. 

When our motive is to grow our church, we reek of desperation and we push people away.  When we show up with no agenda except to show love to the other person and to get to know them for who they are, God has a way of showing up, just as God showed up for Abraham.

God of the Invisible

God of The Invisible

The God of Abraham - Part 3

Sunday, September 17, 2023
Genesis 16:1-16, 21:8-21, 17:20-22

So she called the name of the Lord who spoke to her, “You are a God of seeing,” for she said, “Truly here I have seen him who looks after me.”

Genesis 16:13

God heard the boy’s cries, and God’s messenger called to Hagar from heaven and said to her, “Hagar! What’s wrong? Don’t be afraid. God has heard the boy’s cries over there.  Get up, pick up the boy, and take him by the hand because I will make of him a great nation.”  Then God opened her eyes, and she saw a well. She went over, filled the water flask, and gave the boy a drink.  God remained with the boy; he grew up, lived in the desert, and became an expert archer.  

 Genesis 21:17-20

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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As we journey with Abraham and the story of Israel’s beginnings, it is very easy to cast Hagar and Ishmael aside just as Sarah did.  After all, we are worship the God of Abraham, Issac & Jacob, not the God of Ismael.   Hagar and Ismael are not part of our story, or so we think. 

But what if the God of Abraham, Isaac & Jacob is the God of Ishmael too?  What if the God we worship also cares for those we cast aside because they are different than us?  For centuries Muslims and Christians have been at war, and yet we are all children of Abraham, one nation descended through Isaac and Israel and another through the line of Ishmael. 

Isaac may have been chosen by God as the fulfilment of the promise to Abraham, to birth a nation through whom all the world would be blessed and would come to know the love of their creator, but that choice does not imply any condemnation of Hagar or Ishmael.  They did not do anything wrong.  They and their descendants are not our enemies, nor are they enemies of God.  In fact, Hagar is the first person in our scriptures to “name” God, and the name she uses is “the God who sees.” 

By our modern sensibilities we may want to condemn her as immoral for having a child with a married man, but in her culture, she only did what was demanded of her for the greater good of making sure Abraham had an heir.  She was cast out not because of wrongdoing on her part, but because of Sarah’s jealousy, particularly after the birth of her own miracle baby, Isaac. 

So what does this ancient story of an abandoned single mother and child in the wilderness have to do with us?  Perhaps a lot more than we think, especially considering this abandoned child is our brother.  The fact that God did not abandon Hagar and Ishmael means that we cannot abandon them either. 

Who are the Hagars and Ishmaels cast out in the deserts of our world today?  From a genealogical perspective, that would at least include the Muslim people who descended from Abraham and Ishmael and yet are continually demonized by Christians all over the world. 

More than that, however, we see the face of Hagar & Ishmael in every person who is cast out, who is on the margins, who has lost everything and everyone in their lives.  We see the face of Hagar in those we have overlooked, ignored or even turned our backs on.  We see the face of Ismael in those we do not even know, in the poor and abused and abandoned in our own community who we do not even notice. 

God sees them all.  Do we?

God of Promise & Possibility

God of Promise & Possibility

The God of Abraham - Part 2

Sunday, September 10, 2023
Genesis 17:1-20

When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am El Shaddai.  Walk with me and be trustworthy.  I will make a covenant between us and I will give you many, many descendants.”

Genesis 17:1-2

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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God had promised to make Abram into a great nation, that his descendants would be as numerous as the stars, and that through him all nations of the world would be blessed.  There was only one problem… Abram and his wife were far too old to have children. 

In the ancient near eastern culture, having a male heir was crucial, so Sarai, Abram’s wife, gave her maidservant Hagar to Abram so that she could bear for them the son that she could not have.  By the time we get to chapter 17, Abram’s son Ismael is coming of age as a 13 year old young man.  We’ll come back to Ishmael & Hagar next week, but for now, it is important to remember that according to their culture, Abram did nothing wrong by having a child with Hagar to be his heir.  Though our modern sensibilities consider this immoral, even God does not condemn the morality of Abram and Sarai’s action.

The problem for God, as we see in chapter 17, is not that Abram had a child with his maidservant, but that Ishmael, despite being Abram’s firstborn, is not the child God had promised.  For the Biblical writer, it is not a question of morality or even marital faithfulness.  It is rather a question of Abram taking God’s promises into his own hands and doing things his own way.

13 years have passed.  Abram is 99 years old and preparing his son to one day take responsibility of his great inheritance.  Then God shows up and reminds Abram that the promise has not yet been fulfilled.

“What do you mean, God?  I have Ishmael.  All is well.  Why can’t he inherit your promise?” 

Next week we’ll see that God does not forsake Ishmael.  At the same time, God is working toward a new creation through the faithfulness of Abram’s lineage.  Just as God created all things from a formless void and shaped Adam out of the dust of the ground, so God wants to bring forth his people out of the barrenness of Sarai’s womb.  This is God’s promise to fulfill, not Abram’s. 

The trouble is that while Abram believes God’s promise, he feels he alone is responsible for making it happen.  He is not able to comprehend God’s power to bring new life out of barrenness.  Abram clings to the rational solutions of the flesh over the seemingly impossible work of the Spirit.  He is not trying to be disobedient.  Rather, he is trying to obey in the best way he knows how.  If God says he must have descendants, Abram made sure that would happen in the only logical way available to him.  By verse 17 we find Abram laughing at God.  In chapter 18, we’ll see Sarai do the same. 

I wonder what might be behind this laugh.  Maybe the laugh was simply at the absurdity that he and Sarai should bear children so old, especially given her inability to conceive throughout her life.  Maybe the laugh was to keep from crying over his own desperate frustration that all he invested in Ishmael seemed like it was for nothing.  Maybe it was just a laugh of “You’ve got to be kidding… Now What?!” 

More importantly, I wonder in what ways we are still laughing today as we consider the absurd and impossible promises and possibilities of God for our own life?

God of the Journey

God of the Journey

The God of Abraham - Part 1

Sunday, September 3, 2023
Genesis 12:1-9

The Lord said to Abram, “Leave your land, your family, and your father’s household for the land that I will show you.                                                                                     

Genesis 12:1

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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5th grade was the worst year of my life. 

I started school almost a month late in the oppressive Florida humidity among swarms of love-bugs (if you know, you know). 

Apart from a few good years at the University of Florida and meeting McKenzie, Florida never really grew on me the way everyone said it would.  It may have been flowing with sweat and mosquitos, but it was a far cry from milk and honey.

As I said, one of the few blessings was my time in Gainesville as a Florida Gator.  I no sooner unloaded the car and said goodbye to my parents and I was off on my bike the rest of the week exploring a new campus, a new town, and the beginning of a new life.  That week before classes I met a group of campus ministry students who opened my heart to a depth of faith and a passion for following Jesus that I had never seen in all my years of going to church.   Little did I know then that this encounter would be just the beginning of my recognizing God’s call on my life.

So what does all this have to do with Abraham, let alone the God of Abraham? 

Like both of the seasons above, Abraham’s story is the story of a journey into a new place, a new season, and a new life.  I have had many such transitions and new seasons along my journey through life and ministry, probably more than most… from college to seminary to a doctoral program to training in Spiritual Direction… from Florida to Kentucky to North Carolina… from youth ministry to college ministry to pastoral ministry to retreat leadership…  and the journey continues.

Unlike that first transition from Baltimore to Orlando in 5th grade, every other move was prompted by something bigger than myself that compelled me to step into the unknown.  In 5th grade, I was told that my parents thought the neighborhood I had called home my entire life was no longer safe enough to raise my baby sister.  In my opinion, almost 1,000 miles seems a bit much to flee from a changing neighborhood. 

The God of Abraham is a God of the Journey, a God of transitions, a God who goes with us in every season of life.  I could not see God in my transition to Florida because I wasn’t looking.  I didn’t want to go.  Looking back, I can see how God used every step toward something greater, even if they were not steps I would have taken willingly.  I’m not saying God couldn’t have done great things had I stayed in Baltimore, or that somehow God made my parents move as some sort of grand plan for my life, but I can say that to my surprise, God showed up, even in Florida, in ways I could have never expected.

Just as my parents fled their neighborhood in Baltimore, I went to the University of Florida in large part to get away from home.  What I didn’t know was that God had already gone ahead of me.  God was already there.  And God has already been present in every place and season since. 

Sometimes we set our own path and we choose our own journey.  Other times life takes us where we do not want to go.  No matter how we got here or where we are going, the God of the journey has never left our side, and never will.

More With Less

More With Less

Now What? - Part 3

Sunday, August 27, 2023
Exodus 5:6-20, Luke 9:1-6, Philippians 4:19 

Pharaoh replied, “You are lazy bums, nothing but lazy bums. That’s why you say, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifices to the Lord.’  Go and get back to work! No straw will be given to you, but you still need to make the same number of bricks.”                                                                         -                                                 

Exodus 5:17-18

Jesus called the Twelve together and he gave them power and authority over all demons and to heal sicknesses.  He sent them out to proclaim God’s kingdom and to heal the sick.  He told them, “Take nothing for the journey—no walking stick, no bag, no bread, no money, not even an extra shirt.  Whatever house you enter, remain there until you leave that place.  Wherever they don’t welcome you, as you leave that city, shake the dust off your feet as a witness against them.”

Luke 9:1-5

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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Most of us have heard Pharaoh’s words echoing through various seasons of our lives and certainly in our culture.  Work harder!  Produce more with less!  And of course we know all that is produced goes back up to pad the pockets of those at the top.  Meanwhile, the laborers pay double and triple the rent on salaries that are lower than they were 20 years ago.  When they struggle to make ends meet, we all become Pharaoh’s declaring - “You are lazy… get back to work!”

Sadly this same mentality seeps into the church world.  When our churches struggle to pay the bills or attract new members, we feel like we are not “producing” what we should.  And there are countless “church growth gurus” selling overpriced quick fix programs that make us feel like we are lazy and good for nothing if we don’t have all the same programs as the mega church down the road.  Pharaoh’s voice is prolific and his words haunt us everywhere we turn.  We think of ourselves as hard workers, but in the end, we find ourselves like the slaves in Egypt, working ourselves into the grave in every area of life with very little to show for our efforts while Pharaoh continues to make us feel like we haven’t done enough.

Then we turn to the gospels and find Jesus, our kind our loving master.  Finally, we’ve gotten Pharaoh off our backs and we can live under the gift of mercy and grace.  But wait… Jesus tells us to go out with nothing as well.  Like Pharaoh, it appears at first glance that he expects the disciples to make bricks with no straw, to heal the sick and cast out demons without even so much as a guaranteed place to sleep at night.  Is Jesus just another hardened task master making impossible demands on our lives?

If we look a bit closer we find that Jesus does give them one thing Pharaoh did not, and it’s the thing that makes all the difference.  Luke 9:1 tells us that Jesus gave them all the power and authority needed to do the work he called them to do.  Matthew’s gospel ends with a reminder that Jesus will go with them, that he will be present with them even to the end of the age.  In Philippians 4:19, Paul tells us based on his own experience that God will provide for our every need. 

What if we took Jesus’ command to take nothing with us seriously? 

What would happen if we trusted in his power, his authority, and his presence more than we trusted in our own limited resources? 

What if the greatest power of all comes from the humility of dependence rather than independence? 

What if we stopped working for Jesus and started letting Jesus work through us?

Back to Church

Back to Church?

Now What? - Part 2

Sunday, August 20, 2023
Matthew 4:18-22, 10:1-8a

 As you go, make this announcement: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’  Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those with skin diseases, and throw out demons. You received without having to pay. Therefore, give without demanding payment.

Matthew 10:7-8

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

(note: My wife Rev. McKenzie Sefa & I are presently preaching the same series at our respective congregations. Due to some recording difficulty at my church, I have included her version of this week’s message below. Enjoy!)

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There is no question that the global pandemic of 2020 and 2021 had a significant impact on the way we do “church.”  In some ways, the ongoing move toward building online communities for worship, study and prayer has made church more accessible for many who were previously unable to participate due to health issues, job schedules, etc.  On the other hand, there is something about gathering together in person that can’t quite be replicated, no matter how good our online offerings may be.  I have heard from laity and clergy alike over these past few years that it’s time to stop making our services and bible studies available online because we need to “get people back in church.”

There are a few problems with this theory, well-intentioned as it may be.

1. Eliminating online offerings cuts off people including shut-ins who are not otherwise able to participate.

2. There will always be online opportunities for people to choose from.  People are less likely to return to “our church” than they are to simply find another one to watch online.

3. Though we may like to blame the pandemic for our lower attendance, the truth is that church attendance in the U.S. has been in rapid decline for over two decades.  The pandemic may have sped up the process a bit, but going back to the way things were before 2020 will not address the real problems.

As of 2019, Gallup polls report that only 46% of Americans belong to a house of worship (of any religion).  This is the first time since the 1930’s that the number has dropped under 50%.  What’s more, only 30 to 35% actually attend religious services at least once or twice per month, so “belonging” to a religious institution does not always translate to participation and attendance.  Furthermore, those who identify as “nones” or having no religious affiliation has risen to between 20% and 30% depending on the study. 

This may sound like bad news for the church, but I would argue that it may actually be good news in at least two ways.

1. It is a reality check that we can’t blame any one thing for our decline and it invites us to look at ourselves more closely to evaluate why so many have felt disconnected from our congregations for so long.

2. More importantly, it gives us an opportunity to rethink our metrics.  What if physical attendance in a religious service for one hour a week is not the marker of faith we thought it was?  What if God is at work in people’s lives outside our budlings the other 167 hours of the week as well, and dare we say, even among those who will never darken our doors.

What if getting people in church was never the point? 

Jesus doesn’t gather people to worship him and pray to him.  He gathers them to teach them, to equip them, and to send them out to heal the sick, to cast out demons and even to raise the dead. 

May we go out from our church buildings and do the same.

Back to Normal?

Back to Normal?

Now What? - Part 1

Sunday, August 13, 2023
Numbers 13:25-14:10, John 17:11-19

The entire community raised their voice and the people wept that night.  All the Israelites criticized Moses and Aaron. The entire community said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt or if only we had died in this desert!  Why is the Lord bringing us to this land to fall by the sword? Our wives and our children will be taken by force. Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?”  So they said to each other, “Let’s pick a leader and let’s go back to Egypt.”

Numbers 14:1-4 

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

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Painting Pictures of Egypt

by Sara Groves

I don't want to leave here
I don't want to stay
It feels like pinching to me
Either way
And the places I long for the most
Are the places where I've been
They are calling out to me
Like a long lost friend

It's not about losing faith
It's not about trust
It's all about comfortable
When you move so much
And the place I was wasn't perfect
But I had found a way to live
And it wasn't milk or honey
But then neither is this

I've been painting pictures of Egypt
Leaving out what it lacks
The future feels so hard
And I want to go back
But the places that used to fit me
Cannot hold the things I've learned
Those roads were closed off to me
While my back was turned
The past is so tangible
I know it by heart
Familiar things are never easy
To discard
I was dying for some freedom
But now I hesitate to go
I am caught between the Promise
And the things I know

If it comes to quick
I may not appreciate it
Is that the reason behind all this time in sand?
And if it comes to quick
I may not recognize it
Is that the reason behind all this time in sand?

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How are you painting pictures of Egypt? 

What are some things that you cannot go back to?

Where does nostalgia for the past hold you back from living into the future?

What is God inviting you to leave behind in order to fully live into the next season of your life?

Miracles in Our Midst

Miracles in Our Midst

Back to School Sunday

Sunday, August 6, 2023
John 6:1-15

One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said,  “A youth here has five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that for a crowd like this?”

John 6:8-9 

Listen to this Week’s Sermon here:

We often think of Jesus performing miracles and we often wonder why we don’t see miracles more often in our lives today.  Some claim that miracles ceased after the days of the apostles.  Others deny that miracles ever really happened at all and attempt to come up with other explanations for such supernatural stories.  Still others say that miracles happen all the time, if you only have enough faith.  This last thought has led to significant pain and spiritual harm to those who, like Job, appear to do everything right and still do not experience healing or wholeness in this life. 

There is one thing about Jesus’ miracles, however, that we tend to overlook.  Many of Jesus’ miracles depended on the involvement of others.  So many of the people Jesus healed were brought to Jesus by their friends, some with great difficulty and sacrifice like the paralytic lowered through the roof of a house.  Many were required to do something to complete the miracle, such as the lepers who were told to go and present themselves before the priests or the blind man who had to wash in the pool of Siloam.  Before Jesus turned the water into wine, Mary told those around him to do whatever he said.  Then he instructed them to fill six stone jars with water.  How many of these miracles, I wonder, would not have taken place without the cooperation of others?

That brings us to today’s miracle, the feeding of the 5,000.  When the disciples come to Jesus saying there is not enough food, they suggest sending everyone home.  Jesus likely knew that many of those gathered already suffered under poverty and may not have had a meal to go home to.  Even if they did, he was not about to send people away when they came to him hungry for something more.  So Jesus responds, “You give them something to eat.”

At this point the disciples begin to sound like a typical church council.  “We don’t have enough,” they say.  “It would be far too expensive.  It would take more than half a year’s salary to buy this much food and even if we had that kind of money, there is no place around here to buy it.  It’s impossible.”

Jesus simply tells them to give what little they have and see what happens.  And of course we know the rest of the story.  Their 5 loaves of bread and 2 fish turned into 12 full baskets of leftovers after everyone had their fill.  We focus so much on the miracle that we again miss that it required the disciples to give what they had and to step out in faith.

But John adds one beautiful little detail the other gospel writers appear to overlook.  In his telling, it was not the disciples who had the loaves and fish, it was a young boy, a child.  This boy is the one who is willing to give his measly little lunch if it can help someone else.  He doesn’t apologize for not having enough.  He doesn’t think his gift is too small.  He simply gives what he has with no clue what good, if any, it will accomplish.  Is this what Jesus means when he says we must have the faith of a child? 

Perhaps miracles are indeed still happening all around us, but if we want to see them, maybe we better stop worrying and complaining and simply start doing what Jesus says.