Let Nothing be Wasted
Let nothing be wasted. John 6:12
I ...
Let Nothing be Wasted
Let nothing be wasted. John 6:12
I really wish the Scriptures told us what happened next. In the wisdom of the Holy Spirit, this detail is left out. We just don’t know. We can only speculate.
Here’s what we do know: Jesus turned five loaves of bread and a few fish into a feast for a multitude. They had so much leftover–much more than when they had started–that a plan was required to deal with the extras.
What did they do with them? Maybe the disciples kept them for themselves. They were always on the road and provisions were no doubt scarce. The extras could have sustained Jesus and his band of brothers for quite some time. Maybe they left them with the neediest in the multitude. Maybe they shared them with a leper colony. Maybe they gave them to street children. Maybe they shared them with the women who followed, supported and often funded Jesus’ ministry.
Here’s what we do know: they wasted nothing, not a single scrap.
That’s really convicting to me. Here’s why: It wasn’t just that food was really important back then, or that poverty was everywhere and those leftovers could really help someone. That’s certainly true and would be reason enough to not waste them. But there’s more to it. Those leftovers didn’t exist before Jesus created them out of the original loaves and fish. They represented the miraculous work that God had done. They were like manna–heaven sent. And what God provides in such a miraculous fashion should never be wasted.
Now get this–everything, and I mean EVERYTHING we have in the Christian life is like manna. It’s heaven sent. Our new existence as Jesus’ followers, the fact that we’re new creations, our spiritual gifts, the Word, the Holy Spirit, our blessings, our life mission, our family and Christian community, and certainly our resources and time–all of it is as miraculous as those newly created loaves and fish. There is no difference. And just like the loaves and fish, there’s more of us and our riches than we had before we met Jesus. He multiplies us.
To waste one day, one moment, one heartbeat or one penny when it all represents the miraculous of work of God is to completely dishonor God and to miss the point salvation. It’s like the line in the All Sons and Daughters song Great are You Lord: It’s your breath in our lungs, so we pour out our praise, we pour out our praise.
Don’t take any aspect of your life for granted today. Look around at your life–all you that have and all who you love–and know that it is directly from Jesus. God never gives you a blessing he intends you to keep. Let nothing be wasted.
