Oh the infamous question that plaques us each night? What’s for dinner?
It’s either the question asked by us, our spouse, or our kids.
It greets us at the door after a long day or lingers in our mind all day.
Some weeks I am good at having a menu and being planned for a week of dinners.
Other weeks I am lucky to find a frozen pizza to serve on a dinner plate.
It seems some days I have everything I need for the well-balanced dinner.
Other days I seem to be missing at least one ingredient for everything I go to fix.
I was thinking about how funny, yet awesome, the story is of Jesus and his disciples having to figure out what was for dinner. I love the account in the gospel of Mark the best. (Mark 6:30-44). The apostles had been so busy that day and so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat (verse 31).
People just kept following Jesus everywhere and he realized they were hungry and needed to be fed. The disciples wanted Jesus to send the people away but He said, “let’s give them something to eat.” The disciples were besides themselves! I imagine their question was, “what’s for dinner?” They were telling Jesus how they didn’t have enough money to buy food for everyone and all they had were a couple loaves of bread and a few fish. They had no idea what to make for dinner.
But Jesus took that little bit that they had and fed 5000 people according to Mark 6:44.
What talent or gift do you have that you think isn’t sufficient or of little value? Do you think you have nothing to give to others? Do you just trudge along each day doing the mundane requirements of the day, go home, find something for dinner, go to bed and start all over again the next day doing the same thing?
Well stop it! We have to remember that Jesus took the smallest and used it to touch a ton of people. Don’t trudge along today thinking you have nothing to offer to people. God gave us all something to offer and He will use it to bless many. Maybe it’s a smile to the clerk at the grocery store. Offer to take someone’s cart back to the cart corral. Buy coffee for the car behind you at McDonalds. Babysit a friend’s children so she can have a night to herself. Take cookies to the office. Do a chore that your spouse hates to do. Make your kids their favorite dessert.
Whatever your plans are today, take a minute and find something small and do it with big love. Your “few loaves of bread” can make a difference to someone in a big way! Maybe even think about what’s for dinner and then make it and take it to the neighbor! When I think about it this way, it kinda makes planning dinner not so much of a chore!
