Lent.

As the sunset, the Twelve said, “Dismiss the crowd so they can go to the farms or villages around here and get a room for the night and a bite to eat.  We’re out in the middle of nowhere.”

 “You feed them,” Jesus said. They said, “We couldn't scrape up more than five loaves of bread and a couple of fish—unless, of course, you want us to go to town ourselves and buy food for everybody.” (There were more than five thousand people in the crowd.)

(Luke 9:12-13 Message)

As a child I remember being utterly astounded at how 5,000 people could be fed that day in Galilee, with twelve baskets of crumbs left over! Jesus, in the blessing and feeding of his crowd of listeners, nourished not only their physical bodies but also fed their souls with his teaching that day.

The listeners certainly must have gone from the place refreshed and renewed, filled with blessings beyond the meal of bread and fish. As you move through this time of Lent, consider your sources of nourishment, those things that sustain and deepen your faith. How can you offer these strengths to bless and nourish the people you come in contact with during Lent and beyond? Prepare to be astounded at what can happen.

Let us pray:

Loving God, refresh our faith and expand our opportunities to nourish others. Fill us to overflowing with the miracle of your presence. AMEN.

Today’s devotional was written by Jenny Green and read by Amy Large.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

If you would like to respond to these devotionals in any way, we would enjoy hearing from you. Our email address is: podcasts@1stchurch.org.

First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.