_“They gathered them up and filled
twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves, left by those who
had eaten.” *(John 6:13)*_
Last Sunday, our readings
focused on the excesses of the bad shepherds and God’s judgement on those who
failed woefully to care for their flock. Mark told us how Jesus, the Good
Shepherd, despite his tiredness, did not send the crowds away but sat down to
feed them by teaching them at length.
Our readings today are to
some extent a continuation of that of last Sunday except for the fact that this
time around, we are reading from the Gospel of John. Jesus, the Good Shepherd
not only displays the qualities of a good leader (caring), He teaches us certain
important lessons about life; gratitude, positivity, thanksgiving, sharing,
management of resources, humility and Holy Eucharist.
*1. Care, Empathy and
Compassion: Shining Qualities of a Good Leader.*
In the course of this last
week, the top item on the news was “party defections.” If they truly cared
about the common man, these politicians would simply admit their failures and
resign from all public service. The good they couldn’t achieve with the broom,
they wouldn’t suddenly miraculously achieve under the umbrella or with a
combination of both. Did you listen to the reasons they gave for their
defections? Was any mention made about the plight of the poor hungry man in the
street?
In contrast, we see that
Jesus, the Good shepherd thought first about the need of the people even before
any of them came to complain to him. He saw the people were hungry and he knew
that beyond their physical hunger was a longing for a deeper relationship with
God. His ultimate aim was to feed them with his flesh (Holy Eucharist) and he
began by feeding their hungry stomachs.
We see this same quality in
Elisha in our first reading who ordered that a small quantity of food be used
to feed a hundred men. Generosity is the essence of leadership. Show me a man
who treats his servants (employees) like garbage and I will show you a man who
can never be a good shepherd. A good leader is one who can feel his people’s
pains. He is never removed from the ordinary situation of his people and is not
selfish.
*2. Stop Complaining; Be Grateful
for Little.*
The biggest thief, they say,
is the ungrateful person. Too often, we only notice our lack, we feel
overwhelmed by our mountains of problems, we never have enough, we just which
we had more but we fail to realize there is so much power in the “little” which
we ignore. Most of us are like Philip, we are very good at complaining, we know
how to analyse things very well.
Do you notice how quickly Philip
intelligently calculated the cost of feeding the multitude? Dear friends, there
is only an extent to which intelligence can carry you. You need to step beyond the
level of mathematics, into the realm where one plus one is equal one and where
five plus two is equal to two hundred. On the level of intelligence, you
believe the future will always resemble the past and so you panic. Mere
intelligence without faith keeps you forever stuck in the complain-trap.
Andrew, unlike Philip took
notice of the little boy with little loaves and little fish. He brought his “little”
to Jesus thinking they meant nothing, not knowing that in truth, this little
was more than enough. What is your little? What do you have? Why do you feel
you need more when you already have more than enough? Have you thanked God for
your little? Do you realize that what Jesus did with the little loaves and fish
was to offer a prayer of thanksgiving first? John tells us: “Jesus then took
the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were
seated.” John 6:11.
Am I only focused on the cup
half full? Do I only take note of my problems? How often and how well do I give
thanks? Do I know the miraculous power of thanksgiving? Elkhart Tolle once
said: “If the only prayer you said is ‘Thank you’ it will be enough.”
*3. Even Little Can be
Broken: The Miracle of Sharing.*
The miracle of the loaves is
one miracle that kept happening each time the little was broken. It was a
miracle in motion. The more they broke apart, the more the loaves increased.
The most common lie we tell others as well as ourselves is: “I don’t have.” We
so underestimate our little to the point we begin to believe it is nothing.
Until we break that little, we would never know how much it is.
Never assume, you are too
small or that you can’t do much. Help one person today. Break a little from your
little and watch what happens. God never asked you to end poverty in the world
today. He only wants you to break a little bread for that your neighbour you
saw on the street yesterday.
Recently I heard the story
of a man who used to take long walks along the seashore. One morning, as he
came for his walk, he noticed the sea had washed some little fishes on the
sand. He knew that if the sun comes out, all those fishes would die so he took
it upon himself to catch them one by one the throw back into the sea. As he did
this, a passer-by came and laughed at him: “Sir, do you realize there are over
a million of them out there? When are you going to finish this? No matter how
many you throw back, it would still mean nothing in the end.” In response, this
man picked one fish and said: “To these million fishes, I may mean nothing but
to this one I am holding, I mean 100%” he picked another one and said “100%”,
the next one “100%” and he continued.
As St. Paul says in today’s
second reading, “walk in a manner worthy of your calling” even if you are the
only one standing. Don’t follow the crowd. Your little goodness like these five
loaves and two fish may appear like “nothing” but it means “everything” to five
thousand hungry persons. No one is too poor or too useless in the hand of God.
*4. Wastefulness is Sinful.*
After everyone had eaten,
Jesus said: “Gather up the fragments left over, that nothing may be lost.”
John 6:12. This is very instructive, it is not God’s will that anything He
gives us should be lost; in other words, wasted, left unused, thrown away or
destroyed. God hates wastefulness. If your dustbin is richer than some people’s
freezer, you really need to think twice. Your leftovers are not to be thrown
away, they belong to other hungry persons.
There
is a difference between being blessed and being wasteful. For many Nigerians,
the definition of wealth is when one has enough to waste and is actually
wasting it. While some cannot eat three square meals a day, some spend billions
just for parties that do not last beyond a few hours.
*5.
Every Miracle is a Sign; a Pointer to A Greater Reality.*
After the feeding of the
multitude, the people were about to make Jesus a King. They were expecting that,
henceforth, Jesus would be feeding them but that was not Jesus’ plan. He had
not come to be a bread provider, a miracle worker or a food distributor, He had
come for something greater; “that whosoever believes in him may not perish but
have eternal life” John 3:16. The food was just a sign; a symbol of the
Eucharist.
Jesus would not allow them to
worship Him on the basis of food, He withdrew from them and went into hiding.
We shouldn’t seek God merely for the sake of miracles; we should seek God for
His own sake. Just as Jesus withdrew from them, he withdraws from us when we
reduce him to the level of bread provider, yet, this is one truth that
prosperity preachers will never acknowledge. Today, our churches are filled
with people who have come to ask for bread and are happy to hear messages which
assure them of abundant bread (more than enough to waste), whereas in truth,
Jesus did not die on the cross for the sake of bread. Jesus died that we may be
saved from sin.
Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, deepen
my love for you, make me a good shepherd and free me from materialism which
often disguises as spirituality. Amen.
*Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Seventeenth Sunday of Ordinary Time.
Year B. Bible Study: 2 Kings 4:42-44, Psalm 145:10-18, Ephesians
4:1-6, John 6:1-15).*
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