January 22

Genesis 44-45

Matthew 14:13-36

Psalm 18:37-50

Proverbs 4:11-13

Matthew 14:15-21

When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. 

As evening approached, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a remote place, and it's already getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food." 

Jesus replied, "They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat." 

"We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered. 

"Bring them here to me," he said.  And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.  They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.  The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Matthew 14 tells the account of Jesus feeding the five thousand. I've know about this story for as long as I can remember. It was one of the first Bible stories I learned about when I was a kid in Sunday school. Even though I know this story very well, it doesn't mean that I can't learn something new from it.

Reading it today, I found myself struck by the difference between the way the disciples saw the crowd and the way Jesus saw them. 

Jesus looked the crowd of people and saw what they needed: to be healed by their Savior. He had compassion on them and spent time with them. He did not concern Himself with their location or what late it was getting or what there was to eat. He spent time with the people and showed them His love.

On the other hand, the disciples looked at the crowd of people and saw something different: potential problems and hassle. I can picture them getting agitated, being aware of how late it was getting and starting to worry about how things would work out. It's easy for me to picture this because I'm certain I would be right along with them. Here is the Creator and Savior of the world interacting with the people He loves... and I'm focused on the time and how these people will get food?

I hope that we all can be more like Jesus and see the world through His eyes. I pray that we won't get caught up on insignificant details and then miss the big picture.