Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost August 3, 2008
Scripture	Matthew 14:13-21 13 Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. 14 When he went ashore, he saw a great crowd; and he had compassion for them and cured their sick. 15 When it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, “This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” 16 Jesus said to them, “They need not go away; you give them something to eat.” 17 They replied, “We have nothing here but five loaves and two fish.” 18 And he said, “Bring them here to me.” 19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. 20 And all ate and were filled; and they took up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve baskets full. 21 And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children.
Devotional	When Jesus hears that John has been killed by Herod, he goes into the wilderness to pray. Jesus has gone to pray but 5000 men plus women and children followed. Any thought of a time for solitude is gone. The people follow with their needs and suffering so Jesus takes time to teach and heal them. As evening approaches, the disciples survey the crowd and check the isolation of the place. They begin to take inventory of their supplies. Five loaves and two fish will not go very far. They panic and approach Jesus with advice to send the people into the villages to buy food for themselves. They need to be on the way before they discover how hungry they are. Jesus does not let the disciples off the hook. He says: “you give them something to eat.” How will they stretch five loaves and two fish? Jesus thanks God for the bread and fish and has them to distribute the food to the people. Scholars have suggested several ways that this miracle of loaves feed all the people. The important message for us is how God takes what we have and makes it adequate for all. Does Jesus say to us today: “You give them something to eat?” Much of our problem today is that the food is not in the places where it is needed. Too much in some places and not enough in others. No doubt we could share our food and still have a sufficient amount for ourselves. Just a few minutes ago, Joy ask when I would be ready for lunch and I am not hungry. Breakfast was just a short time ago. It is amazing how quickly my focus on world hunger can be turned back to myself. The miracle today could be getting our excess food to those in need through the local food bank, Bread for the World, or other relief agencies. How can we share our excess with those who have so little? Fasting might be a good idea but not today. Joy mentioned steak! What are our responses to: “You give them something to eat.”