August 2
Eighteenth Sunday
in Ordinary Time
Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21
Today's Gospel: Matthew 14:13-21 (Feeding The 5,000)
When Jesus heard what had happened, he withdrew by
boat privately to a solitary place. Hearing of this, the crowds followed him on
foot from the towns. 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.
Reflection:
Jesus had just heard that His cousin John the
Baptist was beheaded. He tried to get away by boat to grieve alone in a
deserted place. The crowds followed Him on foot anyway. And when He stepped off
that boat carrying His own fresh sorrow, Scripture says He looked at the
multitude and had compassion on them. Jesus was not stressed out by their
presence; rather, He had compassion. Compassion, in the middle of His own grief.
That's the part of this miracle people skip past on their way to the loaves and
fishes. Jesus fed five thousand people that day, but He fed them out of a heart
that was still bleeding from His own loss. He didn't wait until He felt strong
enough to be generous. He gave from His own suffering.
Five loaves and two fish are nothing in the hands of the disciples, yet they are everything in the hands of Jesus. That's the whole lesson, and it's the same
lesson Our Lady lived at Cana, when she noticed the wine had run out before
anyone else said a word, and simply told the servants, “Do whatever He tells
you.” She didn't have the miracle. She just handed the need to the One who did.
You are probably sitting on your own five loaves right now, some small, tired,
not-enough thing you've been embarrassed to offer God because it looks too
small next to the need in front of you. That's exactly the size He likes to
work with.
What are you holding back from Him because it doesn't look like enough?
Rosary Man
Jim 🌹
Freely
given. Freely shared.
