I love Bread!

A great meal usually includes bread, not that white tasteless stuff that some mistake for ‘bread,’ but the whole grain, nutty, dark, and textured bread from the bakery! Our current diet fads demonize bread and carbs but, like most foods, in moderation, bread can still be a part of a healthy, balanced diet. I confess that I do enjoy my bread! In a time past, when meat was expensive and most people could not afford it in the quantity most of us enjoy, bread satisfied hunger. So, what satisfies you, my Christian friend? What is the ‘bread and butter’ of your life?

John tells us about a day when Jesus served bread to 5000 men, a miracle of multiplication, with 12 baskets of leftovers! The people were excited. No more struggle to find food, no more dealing with famines, no more wondering about bread! They were so enthused the Bible says, “they were ready to force him to be their king." (John 6:15, NLT)   

The next day when some of them found Jesus, He told them that He wasn’t around to fill their bellies. “I tell you the truth, you want to be with me because I fed you, not because you understood the miraculous signs. … I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. … I am the living bread that came down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and this bread, which I will offer so the world may live, is my flesh.” (John 6:26,35,51, NLT)

The miracle was a means of pointing out His true identity as God’s provision for the soul hunger of humanity. He tried to get them to understand that they had a need that was far more important than getting dinner on the table. He was the “bread of life!”  They could know Him, consume His words, live in His Presence. He would satisfy them with life. But, did they want that? More to the point, do you, do I? Or do we just want a Jesus who makes life easier for us?

We get things upside down most of the time, believing if are bellies are full, our appetites in life satisfied, that then our soul will be enriched.  The truth is that satisfaction flows inside out. A famished heart that is starving for God can never be satisfied with a slice of bread, or cake for that matter!  Jesus Christ feeds us in ways that have nothing to do with our stomachs and bread! He, Himself, was fed in this way by the Presence of His Father. When His disciples brought Him lunch one day at Jacob’s well, He did not eat. He told them, “I have a kind of food you know nothing about … My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work." (John 4:32,34, NLT)

Is Jesus your Bread of Life? 
Have you trusted yourself to Him, fed on His love, turned your life over to Him?

If we only love what Jesus can do for our budget and our belly, but fail to love with ‘heart, soul, mind and strength,’  we are just like those that He fed dinner who came back the next day looking for another meal who turned away when He closed the kitchen. He wants us to go deeper in spiritual things. Go beyond having a religion designed around some principles that will make life work better for you. Seek a relationship with the Lord that is deep, intimate, and soul-satisfying; something that too few who claim to be ‘Christian’ do.

Our word from the Word is His promise - "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.” (John 6:57-58, NKJV)

____________________

Hungry, I come to You

For I know You satisfy.

I am empty,

But I know Your love

Does not run dry.

And so I wait for You,

So I wait for You.

I'm falling on my knees

Offering all of me.

Jesus, You're all

This heart is living for.

Hungry

Kathrun Scott© 1999 Vineyard Songs (UK/Eire) (Admin. by Mercy / Vineyard Publishing)

CCLI License No. 810055

Pastor Jerry Scott

FAITH DISCOVERY CHURCH

www.FaithDiscovery.com

Scary Jesus!

Do you like surprises?  Before you answer that, consider that the unexpected comes in many different packages!  It delights me to open the mailbox and find a note or little gift from someone. Great surprise, right?  I am not so pleased when a crisis explodes into my life, demanding every bit of courage I can muster to meet it. What can those surprises look like?  It could be sickness, or a change in employment, or a misunderstanding that creates tension.  But, how about when Jesus shows up to meet you?  Have you ever encountered His Presence powerfully in a way that surprises you in a way that is not so pleasant?  His disciples did.

The story is one that has captured our imagination, one of the more familiar ones about Jesus. In fact, the phrase “walking on water” has entered our vocabulary as a reference to someone who does something that we consider impossible. Here is how John experienced that surprising moment.  "When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified. But he said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading." (John 6:16-21, NIV)

A couple of issues set up the story.

First, Jesus missed the boat!  It was time to go home, a trip across the lake. They waited around ‘til dark and Jesus did not show up so they finally decided to just go home.  I have to wonder if they were a little put off about that. Did they wonder where He was? Were they irritated that they had to make the trip in the dark?  Then, they find themselves rowing into a strong wind on choppy water.  Again, my imagination has them complaining about the delay in departure while they are rowing, feeling growing concern about the weather.

Then, the BIG surprise – Jesus showed up in the middle of the lake, without a boat!  

 It’s a wonderful story to us but to those men it was a moment of terror, not a welcomed surprise, at all. They loved Him. But, nobody expected Him to show up in the middle of the windy trip on a rough water.  What they saw had no explanation or understanding, and they were frightened half to death. John implies that they initially resisted His approach. It’s not a long stretch to imagine that their terror caused them to scream at this ‘sight’ to go away. Until, He spoke and His voice, familiar to them, assured them that this was no ghost. This was their Friend, joining them, so they then welcomed Him into their boat.  

Our “Sunday School” ideas about Jesus often tame Him, make Him into a nice, comforting Presence fitting neatly into our lives without disturbance. That is not the Jesus of the Gospels. He does not ‘fit into’ my life, or yours, neatly. Often, when He shows up, it is surprising, terrifying, disturbing, disorienting.  He is the Lord of Life and it is His right as our King and God to appear in our lives as He wishes.  When He does, in the middle of our fear over the unexpected, let us listen for His voice.

Those disciples were terrified another time when He arrived unexpectedly.  After His crucifixion, while they were still grappling with the Resurrection, Luke tells us about His appearance. " While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” (Luke 24:36-39, NIV)

Today, I encourage you, wherever you are in your life, whatever your situation, to invite Jesus to be present. Instead of being shocked at His appearance, or even more sadly, missing out on Him altogether, invite Him to come close. Open your heart and your mind to His Presence, listening for the voice of the Spirit.  Don’t be afraid. Be full of faith.

Here is a word from the Word.  Live in the promise of His Powerful Presence today, not fearing, but full of faith. "God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. . . .For God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. And now he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and immortality through the Good News." (2 Timothy 1:9-10, NLT)

_________

No Longer Slaves

You unravel me with a melody

You surround me with a song

Of deliverance from my enemies

Till all my fears are gone

I'm no longer a slave to fear

I am a child of God

I'm no longer a slave to fear

I am a child of God

From my Mother's womb

You have chosen me

Love has called my name

I've been born again into Your family

Your blood flows through my veins

You split the sea so I could walk right through it

My fears were drowned in perfect love

You rescued me so I could stand and sing

I am a child of God

Brian Johnson | Joel Case | Jonathan David Helser

© 2014 Bethel Music Publishing

CCLI License # 810055

Are you asking the right questions?

 

Albert Einstein was asked about his approach to problems. He replied, “If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on the solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask, for once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes.”  So what questions are you asking of yourself, of life, of the Lord?  Naturally we ask ourselves things like, “How am I going to pay my bills? How will I come through this situation?”  There are much more important concerns in life and if we raise our thoughts to that level, the ordinary questions will find their answers.  Better that we ask ourselves, “What does God want me to do? How can He use me given my present circumstances?”

Jesus’ disciples were ‘just folks.’ They weren’t big picture thinkers, profoundly spiritual people at the start, but He invited them to change in everyday lessons.

One day when He saw a crowd approaching, He asked them what looked like a simple question that was meant to enlarge their faith. "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?” He asked this only to test him, for he already had in mind what he was going to do." (John 6:5-6, NIV)  Philip, living only in the natural, quickly pointed out that it would take a lot of money and that they had none! I can identify with that man.  I define possibility by the boundaries I create – money, time, ability, resources. 

Why is it so much easier to say, “I can’t” than it is to say, “How can we get this done?”

Another of the disciples seems to show a flicker of faith. "Another of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, spoke up, “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will they go among so many?” (John 6:8-9, NIV)  Andrew saw a kid with a lunch, but there were thousands of people that Jesus wanted to feed.  At least he was thinking about the possibility doing what Jesus asked and asking a better question!

What is God asking of you? Let your first response be one of faith that asks Him how He wants it done, not one that says, “I can’t!”  In most of the stories of people used by God there is an appalling lack of faith, at first. Moses told the Lord a whole bunch of reasons he was not able to go lead the Israelites out of their Egyptian slavery.  Gideon was quick to tell the Lord that he was nobody from nowhere and completely incapable of defeating Israel’s enemies.  King Saul told David he was too young and inexperienced to take on Goliath. But, when those people changed the questions they were asking from ‘what I can do’ to ‘what God can do,’ they went on to do the impossible.

Before you run off convinced that you are somebody great, that God has an obligation to do whatever you are dreaming up,  let me quickly remind you that real faith is anchored to HIS PURPOSES AND HIS PLANS, not yours. God has no obligation to make you a success, but He desires to make His Name great and will do with you and me, ordinary creatures who He equips to do what He asks of us.  

Start to learn faith where you are, in the circumstances that are your life, now. It is foolish to think that we will go off to change the lives of thousands in some exotic location if we can’t or won’t love the people we live with. Start here, now.  When the work of rebuilding Jerusalem’s Temple was starting, post Exile, some mocked, some said it could not happen.  God’s answer to them was "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin, to see the plumb line in Zerubbabel’s hand.” (Zechariah 4:10, NLT)  The Lord was glad to see the work started, the foundation laid.

Today, ask God for the way to forgive that person you hate.
Ask Him for the way He wants you to serve … your family.  
Ask Him for faith to start to be generous with the resources He’s entrusted to you.

The disciples learned a lesson that day about the possibilities of faith.  As you read this word from the Word – invite the Spirit of God to increase your faith.  "Then Jesus took the loaves, gave thanks to God, and distributed them to the people. Afterward he did the same with the fish. And they all ate as much as they wanted. After everyone was full, Jesus told his disciples, “Now gather the leftovers, so that nothing is wasted.” So they picked up the pieces and filled twelve baskets with scraps left by the people who had eaten from the five barley loaves." (John 6:11-13, NLT)

__________

Abba, You assure me that You can do

“Immeasurably more than we ask”
but the world I live in conspires to box me in,
to limit my vision.

Help me to ask the right questions,

to seek Your will and to invite Your solutions.
Increase my faith!

And, when people see Your love operating in me

then YOU will be honored,  lifted up, and all will be drawn to You.

Work through me, today, I pray,

In Jesus’ Name. Amen