Who Can You Relate to More?

As the man reached his destination he taught his friends, his closest, about the real meaning of existence. No fluff. No candy coating. Just reality in a handbag. His ideas seemed radical and his interpretation difficult to hear let alone follow. Issues that plague our Westcoast culture seemed to, at least, have plagued the Eastern shores of their world as well. Their reality as well as ours. Anger, Lust, Divorce, Money, Revenge, Promises, the Poor, the Unloved. Nothing was taboo. Nothing left uncovered. Everything turned upside down. Or so it seemed. After the lesson in life this man turns his attention to those who have also gathered to hear. Some may have come out of curiosity, some may have come out of animosity, some may have come purely out of the phenomenon called "herding". Whatever their cause his effect would impact that mountainside like no Billy Graham Crusade has ever done. Looking back two-thousand years we see thirteen men on the verge of the incredible. Some would say the impossible. Some would dismiss as improbable. But the question rings loud and clear and penetrates any and all presuppositions. "Where can we buy bread so that these may eat?"

The question is asked of Philip. Now Phil was from the town that this mountain side towered over and if anyone knew if there was enough grub around he would know. But instead of stratigizing he turns to criticizing. "Seven months of pay would not even buy enough food for this crowd". Can you hear it? Can you sense it? "What are you thinking?" is what Phil is saying. We can't buy that amount of food! You're crazy!

Small potatoes. Small ideas. Small thinking. Small trust. Small life. Small God. Big problem.

Andrew picks up in the conversation and points out to Phil and Jesus that a little boy has some food. Couple loaves and some dry fish. "There is a boy here who has five loaves and two fish, but what are these for such a big crowd?" You can almost see Phil's eyes rolling into his head. Andrew, Andrew, were did you learn to think that this might be enough? Be realistic Andrew, this wouldn't even be enough for yourself! Phil wouldn't think of himself as pessimistic, just realistic. Andrew just might have wanted to see what happens when the impossible, the improbable, even the incredible meets the One who created the fish and gave man the ability and intellect to make the bread.

"Have the people sit down" Jesus says. Phil sits, and is probably waiting to say "I told you so! See, you've let everyone down with your pie in the sky attitude. That's just not realistic!" Andrew sits and probably wonders what he and everyone else who has gathered will see. Not only see, but taste, feel, smell and yes, even hear.

We tend to get caught up in the story with Jesus feeding more than five-thousand people. We tend to focus on the issue of God's abundant giving. We may even tend to get caught up in the trend that would say that God always gives whatever we want. But we tend to lose sight of the lesson that he was trying to teach Phil. "When a crisis comes that is too big for you, an impossible task, an improbable outcome, an incredible unforeseen event. Who are you going to trust, Phil? Are you going to trust your earning potential? Are you going to trust your ability to network? Are you going to trust in your own 'realistic' outlook or, are you going to trust in the One whom you have heard?" Tough questions. Tough answers. Sometimes tough lessons.

To whom can you relate more, Phil the realist or Andrew the opportunistic? Whomever you are, would you like to sit down and experience the unexpected? The impossible? The incredible?

Until Then...