January 28 – Compassionate Feasting with the King

When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. ... Ordering the people to sit down on the grass, He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food, and breaking the loaves He gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds, and they all ate and were satisfied. They picked up what was left over of the broken pieces, twelve full baskets. There were about five thousand men who ate, besides women and children. Matthew 14:14, 19-21 

At the end of a long day of healing sick people, Jesus probably just wanted to relax and have a nice meal…but this one day there were so many people and only a few fish and little loaves of bread. Jesus was a miracle worker. He blessed that food and fed 5,000 men, as well as their wives and children. Jesus had compassion on those people. He knew that like Himself they had been sitting for the whole day without eating while they were so attentive to His teaching and healing. If He sent them home without eating some might faint along the way—so He provided a meal of fish and bread. Pure compassion. He broke the bread, blessed it and they all feasted. Everyone ate as much as they could…and the disciples gathered up twelve baskets of leftovers. What a feast!  

Training Tip – Count out 5,000 Cheerios to represent those 5,000 men. Then have some fish and bread for supper. Explain how Jesus blessed the fish and loaves and fed five thousand men. For older children you could visit a football or baseball stadium and see 5,000 people in one place at one time. Then use five fish sandwiches or five hamburgers to represent the five fish and loaves of bread that Jesus blessed. Ask them how far that food would go? Your family alone could probably eat that much. This should dramatically illustrate the miracle of the feeding of those 5,000 men, plus their families.

Lord – Thank you for the fish and bread You provide for us…and for Your own example of compassionl

All scripture quoted from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise noted.

© 2013 by Mickey M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.