Feeding the Hungry

 

Matthew 15: 29=37

Jesus Feeds the Four Thousand

²⁹ Jesus left there and went along the Sea of Galilee. Then he went up on a mountainside and sat down. ³⁰ Great crowds came to him, bringing the lame, the blind, the crippled, the mute and many others, and laid them at his feet; and he healed them. ³¹ The people were amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the crippled made well, the lame walking and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.

³² Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. I do not want to send them away hungry, or they may collapse on the way.”

³³ His disciples answered, “Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?”

³⁴ “How many loaves do you have?” Jesus asked.

“Seven,” they replied, “and a few small fish.”

³⁵ He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. ³⁶ Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. ³⁷ They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.

As we relish the Bread of Life, we also become more and more aware of the bread that feeds the body, which we often take for granted. Jesus was moved by the hungry crowd and performed a miracle to feed them. His action reminds us of an avenue open to us, which we often overlook, that is, of feeding the hungry in our communities.  Thanksgiving was accompanied by generous food drives, but what about the "in-between-times"?  We might make it a practice to make small donations to food pantries on a regular basis to help make sure that the hungry always have access to food.  Advent is a good time to start.

Bro. Rene