What's In Your Lunch Bag?

In the many times I’ve read about the little boy who shared his lunch with Jesus and then the entire crowd, because Jesus miraculously multiplied the food, I’ve never given much thought to the little boy. His appearance is brief and unheralded. Out of the four gospel accounts of the story, only one mentions the boy at all.

Midday Connection, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, offers their radio broadcast on podcast, so I always download it and listen at my leisure. The other day, I found them discussing the book Daily Seeds from Women Who Walk in Faith. I believe I’m going to get this book for 2009. I have several lengthier Bible Studies going on, but this seems like a nice, brief daily one for the days when I’m in a hurry or the days when I want a little bit more or a quick pick-me-up in the middle of the day.

November 5th’s reading is by Robin Chaddock. She discusses the five loaves & two fish story, then she zeroes in on Luke 9:16,17, where Christ had multiplied the food, divided it out and gave it to the disciples to distribute. Chaddock compares the boy’s bagged lunch to the unique gifts God gives each of us to use as He specifies, as he gave the disciples the food to be used as he instructed. In the study, Chaddock challenges us with this question: What is in your lunch bag? “The lunch bag that you have right now, nothing more, nothing less.” She continues, “You are in charge of knowing what you have and God is in charge of distribution.”

I love that! I never thought of my spiritual gifts or my worldly possessions or my God-given blessings as my “lunch bag.” The parallels are amazing. We were created in a particular fashion to be blessed and transformed by God through Christ and then utilized for particular assignments in our surroundings. Open up your lunch bag today & see how God utilizes it.