13th February, Saturday.
I. Gen 3:9-24
II. Mk 8:1-10
Theme: Sharing the little we have
There are two questions asked in today’s gospel reading. A question by the disciples and a question by Jesus. The question of the disciples is a somewhat despairing one, ‘Where could anyone get bread to feed these people in a deserted place?’ The question of Jesus is much more hopeful and already points to how the crowd will be fed, ‘How many loaves have you?’ When we are faced with a situation that seems beyond our resources to deal with, it is important to ask the right kind of question. Some questions only increase our sense of powerlessness. Other questions encourage us to take whatever step we can take, no matter how small. Jesus wanted his disciples to take the initiative to address the hunger of the crowd.
There were some resources there which they could place at the Lord’s disposal. They could not feed the crowd on their own, but their contribution was essential to the Lord’s feeding of the crowd. As people of faith, we believe that the Lord wants to work through us for the good of the humanity. It may seem as if our resources are very limited before the task in hand. Yet, if we are generous with those resources and invite the Lord to work with them, he can accomplish far more through us than we could ever imagine. What matters is our willingness to share the little we have and leave at the Lord’s disposal of ourselves completely trusting in his providential care.
Bro. Anthony Peter SMM
II BTh