Matthew 14:19

And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. The he gave them to the disciples and the disciples gave them to the people.

Most people are familiar with this part of the Gospels. The feeding of the five thousand is the only event (outside of the crucifixion) that is recorded in all for of the Gospels. Often when you find things repeated in scripture, it is because the idea or event is very important.

Think about this a little differently. This is not just a story about a miracle where thousands of people were feed to full satisfaction with five loaves of bread and two fish. This is really a model of what God does with those who call him Lord and Savior.

In this recounting, Jesus first gives thanks, then breaks the loaves and finally gives them away. He treats us in a very similar manner. I think God is greatly pleased when someone He has called comes to faith. But there is more to it than just that. We must give ourselves over fully to God. And for many people, that means being broken. God uses those tough times in our lives to get our attention and realize that nothing is possible without God, especially our salvation. We must have that dependency upon God and God alone.

Once we have been broken and turn control of our lives over to God, He then gives us away to others. A true faith does not hide in the house never impacting those around you. When we are in His light, it is to shine all around us in the things that we say, think and do. God uses his followers to be examples of His kingdom which brings the best satisfaction man has ever know, far more so than the satisfaction that the five thousand felt after eating their miracle meal.

May you serve with great joy.

Mark

I Corinthians 12

OK. It is nearing the end of the work week (for some of you) and we need to loosen up a little. Come one Everyone! Let's do the HOKEY POKEY!

You put your right hand in. You put your right hand out. You put your right hand in and you shake it all about!

(some of you are doing this in your cubicles right now. Don't sing too loudly, though)

You do the Hokey Pokey and you turn your self around (this is where your office chair comes in handy)!

That what it's all about!

OK. Sit down now and see how many of your co-workers are looking at you.

Believe it or not, the Bible has something to say about the Hokey Pokey. Go to I Corinthians 12 and read about the parts of the body. In verse 14 we read: Now the body is not made up of one part but of many. If the foot should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of small be?

Now the key part is next, here is verse 18: But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.

Each of us poses the gifts that God has given us. Some are meant to be teachers, some have the gift of healing, others have the gift of administration, some are helpers, some gifted in listening, others are gifted in study and preaching. No one gift is more important than the others as all are needed and used by God to further his kingdom.

We spoke about work the past few days. Again, God is calling us to use our gifts in His kingdom. You may have an occupation, that is, a job that brings in money. But everyone has a vocation, a special calling. It is a wonderful thing when your occupation and vocation match up, but that is not always the case. Many of us lead that "double life" of both occupation and vocation.

In faith, serving God by using our gifts, that is what He asks of those who call him Lord. And in the great words of the Hokey Pokey, "That's what it's all about!"

May you serve with great joy.

Mark

Genesis 3:17b-19

Yesterday we discussed the role of work in our lives. As we saw in Genesis 2:15, man was intended to share in God's creation as caretakers of the Garden of Eden which in Hebrew is synonymous with bliss, paradise or delight. And truly, the garden was a delight. Everything thing that Adam and Eve needed was provided with pleasant work.

But then Adam and Eve rebel against God's few rules of the garden, specifically not to eat of the tree of life or the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When they eat the forbidden fruit (we have this image of the fruit being an apple even though that is not stated anywhere in the text) disobeying God, there is a list of consequences.

One of those consequences is a change in work for man. Instead of a place of fulfilling work in an environment of plenty, Adam is condemned to (Genesis 3:17b-19) "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life. It will produce thorns and thistles for you, and you will eat the plants of the field. By the sweat of your brow you will eat your food until you return to the ground."

Notice how the nature of the work has changed. Never mentioned before were the words "sweat" or "toil". Not only toil, but painful toil, working a creation that would not automatically yield plenty. There will be thorns and thistles instead.

And that is our state until Christ returns again to establish the new heaven and new earth. What will happen then? Will there be work? I don't know. What I do know is that we will worship God in perfection and that things will be so different from what we can possibly conceive. It will be perfection in the presence of God and that is enough for me.

Mark

Genesis 1:28-30

Genesis 1:28-30
God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground." Then God said, " I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds of the air and all the creatures that move on the ground - everything that has the breath of life in it - I give every green plant for food." And it was so.

Genesis 2:15 The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.

God created each of us to work, establishing work from the very beginning of his creation. Now the work in garden was a bit different than our work today. In the garden there was perfection. Everything would have been easily done and the yield of the plants would have been amazing. The whole of God's creation was given to Adam with the intent that man would live in this environment forever.

What is your attitude towards your work? Well, our work today is different than what God had intended. Because of Adam and Eve's sin in the garden, things changed and we will explore that more tomorrow. But today, in our fallen world, we are still called to work. You will find many other references in the Bible pertaining to work and our relationship with our co-workers and supervisors.

What about retirement? Is there a Biblical call for retirement? Note that Moses and Aaron for instance

Blessings to you today!

Mark

God You Spin the Whirling Planets

Jane Parker Huber wrote a wonderful hymn in the last century entitled "God You Spin the Whirling Planets". This beautiful song details Creation as outlined in the early chapters of Genesis.

Verse one:
God, You spin the whirling planets, fill the seas and spread the plain.
Mold the mountains, fashion blossoms, Call forth sunshine, wind and rain.
We created in Your image, would a true reflection be.
Of Your justice, grace and mercy and the truth that makes us free.

Verse two:
You have called us to be faithful in our life and ministry.
We respond in grateful worship, joined in one community.
When we blur Your gracious image, focus us and make us whole.
Healed and strengthened as Your people, we move onward toward Your goal.

Verse three:
God, Your word is still creating calling us to life made new.
Now reveal to us fresh vistas where there's work to dare and do.
Keep us clear of all distortion. Polish us with loving care.
Thus new creatures in Your image, we'll proclaim Christ everywhere.

Some of the imagery is just spectacular. The power that God exhibited to create Mount Everest also created delicate flower blossoms and humming birds!

The third verse has great application for us today. God does call each of us to a new life and provides us with fresh views of where He would have us serve Him, bringing glory to His kingdom. With God's help, we can stay focused on Him while he polishes off our rough edges so that we might serve Him more gloriously by proclaiming Christ everywhere.

Blessings to you today!

Mark