"Filled Full" February Week 2 Learning Together

     Greetings! This is the second online lesson about “Filled Full,” which is our February story found in The Jesus Storybook Bible written by Sally Lloyd-Jones on pages 244-249.
     Children: Please listen again to our video about the five loaves and two fish. You can look at the book pictures as you listen or look at your own pictures that you drew last week.
      We left the disciples wondering what Jesus could have been thinking when He told them to feed the large crowd that had gathered to hear Jesus teach.
     As in any emergency, it is best to first look around and see what resources you already have to help you, and that is what the disciples did, but they could find only one boy who happened to have a lunch with him, and that only consisted of five loaves of bread and two fish. But the disciples brought this kid to Jesus, and he handed over his lunch. Jesus prayed over it, and had people start passing the food around. Somehow, that one little lunch didn’t run out. In fact, it fed everyone in the crowd, with food left over! How could such a happening have been possible?
     If you would like Pastor Steve to answer any of your questions or listen to your opinions, please feel free to contact him through this blog.
     Adults: The Biblical references for this story are from Matthew 14, Mark 6, and Luke 9.
     In our first lesson last week, I began a discussion of the five things that we can learn from the little boy who shared his lunch. Here are the next two.
     3. Multiplication often requires trust. At some point, the boy had to release the food he possessed. At some point, he had to settle in his heart and mind that the food was not his to hold. At some point, he had to determine that he was not the one who dictated how the food was to be used. Was the boy hungry at that moment? Possibly. Did the boy have doubts whether his food could be helpful? Probably. Did the boy wonder whether his needs would be met? It is likely, but he released the food, nonetheless.
     Why would we release the possessions we hold? Trust. Giving and holding possessions loosely requires trust. Trust that God will use the resources for his purposes; trust that God will care for our needs. The boy with the meal saw the few fish and loaves he once held multiply in a miraculous way. In Jesus’ hands the small meal became great, but it took an act of trust to get the meal into Jesus’ hands. Multiplication often requires trust. The boy learned this on that day.
     4. Multiplication often requires sacrifice. The boy made a great sacrifice. Much like the widow who gave two coins in the temple treasury, the boy gave all that was in his possession. The act was likely a painful one, maybe not physically painful, but mentally and, possibly, emotionally. The boy went from comfortable, having sustenance, to uncomfortable, having no sustenance.
     That is how sacrifice works. Sacrifice drives out comfort, but sacrificial giving is what we find celebrated in Scripture. God looked favorably on Abel’s offering because he sacrificed his best. God blessed Abraham because he was willing to sacrifice his son. Jesus pointed out the widow with two coins because she gave all she had. Biblical giving is sacrificial. And God uses the sacrifice to shape the giver’s heart and advance His Kingdom. Multiplication often requires sacrifice. The boy learned this on that day.
     Just like children, adults can have questions about Jesus and His crowd-feeding miracle. Pastor Steve is at the ready to discuss any aspect with you!
~This week’s prayer: Lord, I want to thank you for those who grow the food I eat, for those who transport it and sell it, and for those who prepare it. Amen
     There will be one more online Learning Together lesson this month about the story “Filled Full,” and the following week on the fourth Sunday, February 25, 2024, our Sunday School will gather for story reading, discussion, and a related craft. Hope to see you then!
Have a good week,
Margo Greer