When Jesus was teaching a crowd of 5,000 or more, His teaching ran late and He wanted to feed all of them so they would not grow faint on their journeys home. The disciples searched high and low and found one small lad that had with him five barley loaves and two fishes. Sometimes I like to imagine what these people might have been doing when they stumble into the scriptures. It is possible that this lad was his family's only source of food. Maybe he was being raised by a single parent or both of his parents were sick. Maybe he had many brothers and sisters and extended family relying on him and he was making his way dejectedly back home because five loaves and two fishes weren't going to be enough. But something about this Jesus and his preaching spoke to him and he couldn't help but listen to the marvelous words. Perhaps the teaching chased away his fears and even though it meant he and his large family was depending on him, he offered what little he had to this wonderful man who had brought such peace to his heart. And then imagine this lad watching his meager little meal get multiplied and multiplied until it had fed so many thousands of people. He might have wished a little bitterly that some of that food could have gone to help feed his family. Maybe he didn't even take any because he didn't want to eat when his family would go hungry. But what do the scriptures say? “Therefore they gathered them together, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves, which remained over and above unto them that had eaten.” (John 6:13). From his five small loaves there were twelve baskets over and above what the lad had originally offered. Imagine Jesus turning to the lad and thanking Him for giving all that he had so that the works of God might be made manifest. Imagine Jesus telling him that He knew how many people were depending on him. Maybe Jesus asked some of His disciples to help this lad take the twelve baskets over and above home to feed not just his hungry family but the whole hungry neighborhood. Perhaps it didn't go exactly like that, but it might have. The important thing is that when we give to the Lord, especially when we give all that we have, He gives back over and above.
