“When Jesus looked up and saw a great crowd coming toward him, he said to Philip, ‘Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?’ He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.” – John 6: 5
What’s your first response when faced with an obstacle?
Do you analyze the situation, seeking out the most logical solution? You’re the realist.
Perhaps the only option you see is such a long shot, there’s no way it could work – could it? You’re always the skeptic.
Or maybe in spite of overwhelming odds, you see challenges as opportunities of faith. You’re the believer.
God wants us to be like the believer going to Christ first – even with limited resources and overwhelming problems. However, too often, we find ourselves somewhere between the realist and the skeptic, blind to what God can do.
Jesus’ own disciples found themselves facing the same dilemma when a huge crowd had gathered. As noon approached, thoughts turned towards lunch. Philip, the realist, quickly calculated the cost of feeding a crowd of over 5,000. In spite of his front-row seat to Jesus’ previous miracles, Philips’ first thought was, “Impossible.”
Andrew was next. Walking through the crowd, he saw a boy with a small sack lunch. Andrew, too, had seen Jesus perform countless miracles, and yet he was skeptical. Still, he brought the boy with his limited resources before Jesus – hopeful. Now take a look at the young boy and his tiny sack lunch: five loaves of bread and two fish. With no idea how his small lunch could help, this boy offered all he had to Jesus. He was a believer. Using that small sack lunch, Jesus miraculously fed everyone with leftovers to spare.
Who are you in this story? Are you like Philip? Andrew? Or the boy? The next time you’re facing a huge obstacle, remember the ways God has blessed you in the past. Look to Him and discover all God can do, even with a skeptic’s faith.
Who knows? God might just do something miraculous in your life!
Written by Bryant Wright, Founder, RFTH
