A Lesson from Leftovers

SCRIPTURE: John 6:12 So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, "Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost."

OBSERVATION: This verse is one portion of this story that I have never really thought of before -- the clean-up. Who ever wants to think of clean-up? But it is part of the story.

Jesus demonstrates, once again, His seemingly contradictory nature. He baffles us. He had just performed an incredible miracle. Thousands and thousands were fed. Not just sparingly, but they were completely filled and couldn't eat anymore. The text tells us that just to give everyone a small morsel would have cost a small fortune -- much more than they could spare financially. Financial solutions are always limited solutions. But Jesus' solution was seemingly limitless. There seemed to be no difficulty for Him to provide more than -- much more than -- finances could have provided. There is no end to His resources and no limit to His ability. No, in light of that, doesn't this statement seem a little odd? "Gather up the fragments so that nothing is lost?" In other words, pick up the left-overs so we can use them again. Fill your baskets with whatever has been cast out so that we have this old, half-eaten food for later. I think if I were one of the disciples there that day I would have suggested, "Hey, Jesus. Is it really necessary for us to go through all this clean-up trouble? It's just a lot of work for nothing. I'm sure the animals around here will eventually get it all cleaned up. I don't know about the other guys, but I don't really think I want to eat this half chewed bread and fish that we find lying on the ground. We don't really have to, You know. Next time we're hungry just do this little trick of Yours again and we'll have plenty! And it will be fresh! With Your limitless resources we can certainly afford to just leave this here. What do you say?"

I think it's a pretty good idea, and it shows a great deal of faith! The problem is, it seems to violate one of Jesus' values: "that nothing is lost."

APPLICATION: Jesus creates things for a purpose -- not to be trash. More important than presuming upon Jesus' limitless resources is to be faithful with what you've already been given. This has many applications: from humility and the hard work of going back through the field to pick up the fragments; to not allowing the gifts that God has given me to be lost or wasted and unused; to giving a portion of what Jesus gives me back to Him; to carefully stewarding resources. There are a lot of applications but they all flow from this: Be faithful with what He gives me and value every morsel. Don't presume upon His grace but treat everything with great respect and appreciation.

PRAYER: Jesus, You are so generous and limitless in Your resources. Forgive me when that has caused me to be wasteful, with finances, with people, with opportunities, with time, etc. Never allow presumption to get in the way of my faithfulness with every scrap. Thank You for every morsel of my life. By treating each crumb with respect I respect You. Make me a faithful servant, willing to gather up the left-overs and not demanding daily miracles from You. You provided through the loaves and fishes and You provided with the left-overs that the disciples had to go out and gather. Both are gifts from You. Amen.