Let The Lord Do A Lot With Your Little

Let The Lord Do A Lot With Your Little

Scripture in the Spotlight:

John 6:1-14

6 Some time after this, Jesus crossed to the far shore of the Sea of Galilee (that is, the Sea of Tiberius), ² and a great crowd of people followed him because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. ³ Then Jesus went up on a mountainside and sat down with his disciples. ⁴ The Jewish Passover Festival was near.

⁵ 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?” ⁶ He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do.

⁷ Philip answered him, “It would take more than half a year’s wages^[a] to buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!”

⁸ Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, ⁹ “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?”

¹⁰ Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass in that place, and they sat down (about five thousand men were there). ¹¹ Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.

¹² When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” ¹³ So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.

¹⁴ After the people saw the sign Jesus performed, they began to say, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.”

 

Did you catch that?  When Jesus asked His disciples where bread could be obtained for the thousands that were present, both Phillip and Andrew immediately thought of how little they had.  For Phillip, it was a matter of too little money.  For Andrew, it was an issue of too little substance.  They assumed that because they had little to offer, Christ would be limited on what He could do with it.

Don’t we all do the same thing?  We think of how little we have:   little talent, little money, little time, etc.  Too often we assume that Christ is going to be limited with what He can do in our lives, because of the little we have available.  The reality is, just as Christ used the 5 little loaves and 2 little fish to feed a great number of people in the Scripture, He can use your little to do great things in your life, as well.

When I was a child, A&P grocery stores produced a yearly Christmas album.  Remember?  Oh how I loved them!  From children’s favorites such as Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer to the more mature offerings like Oh Holy Night, there was something for everyone.  But one song had a special reverence for me.  When I heard the first few notes, I stopped everything, closed my eyes, and took in each word of Barbara Streisand’s rendition of I Wonder As I Wander.

When Barbara sang these beautiful lines in her angelic voice, I could visualize a peaceful snow covered moonlit meadow where I was alone with the Lord.  Too, it was the only song I had ever known to use the term “ornery.”  That was the word that my great grandfather used to describe a cantankerous person.  So, even as a small child, I fully understood the scene described in this song…that of a person lost in deep contemplation of how a sinless Christ was willing to sacrifice Himself for people that are just plain obstinate. It made me think about the matter deeply.  It humbled me.  It made me grateful.  It left me awestruck. 

If you are unfamiliar with the song I Wonder As A Wander, I invite you to hear Barbara sing it:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UR61trVDbyQ

The lyrics are as follows:

I wonder as I wander out under the sky
How Jesus, the Savior
Did come for to die
For poor ornery people
Like you and like I
I wonder as I wander out under the sky
If Jesus had wanted for any wee thing
A star in the sky or a bird on the wing...
Or all of God's angels
in Heaven for to sing
He surely could have had them
For He was the king
I wander as I wander out under the sky
How Jesus, the Savior
Did come for to die
For poor ornery people
Like you and like I
I wonder as I wander out under the sky

As an adult, I decided to track down the origins of this beloved song.  I found the path led back home.  It turns out, I Wonder As I Wander was discovered right here in North Carolina. 

Documentation of the events is recorded in many reference sources, including: http://www.hymnsandcarolsofchristmas.com/Hymns_and_Carols/Biographies/john_jacob_niles.htm.  Below is the tale of John Jacob Nile’s first hearing of this Appalachian tune.

 

"I Wonder As I Wander grew out of three lines of music sung for me by a girl who called herself Annie Morgan. The place was Murphy, North Carolina, and the time was July, 1933. The Morgan family, revivalists all, were about to be ejected by the police, after having camped in the town square for some little time, cooking, washing, hanging their wash from the Confederate monument and generally conducting themselves in such a way as to be classed a public nuisance. Preacher Morgan and his wife pled poverty; they had to hold one more meeting in order to buy enough gas to get out of town. It was then that Annie Morgan came out--a tousled, unwashed blond, and very lovely. She sang the first three lines of the verse of "I Wonder As I Wander". At twenty-five cents a performance, I tried to get her to sing all the song. After eight tries, all of which are carefully recorded in my notes, I had only three lines of verse, a garbled fragment of melodic material--and a magnificent idea. With the writing of additional verses and the development of the original melodic material, "I Wonder As I Wander" came into being. I sang it for five years in my concerts before it caught on. Since then, it has been sung by soloists and choral groups wherever the English language is spoken and sung."

 

While it was Barbara’s fantastic voice that first introduced me to the song, this folksong has been recorded by many vocal powerhouses such as Julie Andrews, Peter Paul and Mary, Joan Baez, Vanessa Williams, and Harry Connick, Jr.  I cannot imagine how many countless thousands have now heard I Wonder As I Wander.  Of those thousands, I ponder how many more, in addition to myself, have been led to contemplate the awesome reality of Christ’s sacrificial love for such unlovely creature as man. 

Annie Morgan, young and penniless…  Annie Morgan, who made her home in the street with her family...  Annie Morgan that only had a song fragment to her name…Annie Morgan had so very little, but God was able to use it for a lot.

Return now with me, to our Scripture. 

Remember this text? 

“ ² and a great crowd of people followed Him (Jesus) because they saw the signs he had performed by healing the sick. “

This crowd, a mass of people that didn’t see Jesus daily, that didn’t eat with Him, that didn’t speak with Him directly, that didn’t house with Him were now following Him because they saw and believed in His ability to perform miracles.  They had great faith based on what little they had witnessed.  Yet, those that were the closest to Christ (Phillip and Andrew) doubted He could do much with what little they had. 

Even when Jesus was faced with seemingly inadequate funds and sparse supplies, “¹¹ Jesus then took the loaves, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted. He did the same with the fish.” 

The little in the hands of the Lord adequately fed the masses.  Not only did each person receive what they needed, but there was plenty left over!

 ”¹² When they had all had enough to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” ¹³ So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves left over by those who had eaten.”

Yes, to Andrew and Phillip there seemed to be too little at hand to address the challenge that lay before them.  I have been there.  Haven’t you?  I have been anxious about too little money.  I have been reluctant to entertain in my home because I deemed it too small.  I have put off approaching someone that I didn’t know well, because I didn’t feel important enough.  I rarely offered to bring food to someone in need because I am not an excellent cook. I have put off seeing a friend in need, because I had too little time.  Despite knowing what I should do for Jesus, I have stopped short because I could only see how little I had….not having adequate faith in Him and what He could ultimately do with it. 

In our Scripture, Jesus took the little at hand—a few loaves and fishes—and fed a multitude!  Phillip and Andrew could NOT have done that.  Only Christ could. 

In our lives it is this same Jesus that can take the little we put into His hands and still do wonderful things in our lives today!

Remember Annie Morgan?  No money, no home, nothing but a tiny hummed tune.  Yet, that tune essentially went from her lips to the world because Jesus was in it!  She, herself, would have been powerless to have even attracted an audience of twenty five.  Yet, her little song in the hands of the Lord reached the ears of thousands of His people. 

Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and will be tomorrow.  The same Lord that could produce a miracle from the little He had to work with ages ago, can and does have that same ability to this day. 

I have seen Him stretch my dollars to cover my needs…my anxiety was a waste of time and energy.  I have missed the chance to make some awesome memories with guests because I feared my home was too small for a gathering.  Me being “important” or not, who knows if my approaching a stranger with a smile and a word of encouragement—under the direction of the Lord—could have helped someone with a difficult day.  Though I cannot cook, perhaps a gift of what little I can prepare well would have helped a friend to know that I cared.  Time is well within the realm of what the Lord controls.  Though I have little, if I gave it to a lonely person, would not the Lord help me to gain time in another area?  Of course He would!  There are areas where I should have let my faith step in and not my reasoning.  Yes, “little” limits me, but never limits Jesus.  I should always place my little into His hands to let Him do a lot of good.

What about you?  What “little” is stopping you?  Is it time?  Is it money?  Is it skill?  Is it talent?  Is your “little” holding you back?  Is it making you anxious?  Is it robbing you of blessings?  Is it keeping you from blessing others?

I intend to stop looking at the little I have on hand and instead offer what I have to Jesus and watch for the miracle He will perform with it!  I challenge you, from this moment forward, to do the same. 

 

Let us pray:

Dear Lord,

In this fallen world we find that we are met with challenges almost daily.  Some are minor inconveniences, others are so large as to appear hopeless.  We see that even those close to You still felt limited by the little they had at hand.  Even Your disciples didn’t always turn to You first in full faith.  Help us to remember that nothing is beyond Your ability to solve.  You are not limited by what we have on hand.  From this point forward, help us to remember to place what we do have into Your capable hands for the greatest outcome.

In Jesus’ Holy Name we pray.  Amen