Whispers of His Power – SEPTEMBER 10

Mark 6.35-44:  The feeding of five thousand with five loaves and two fishes.

Mark 8.1-9:  The feeding of four thousand with seven loaves and a few small fishes.

Some hearts are often troubled by the fear of failing those who look to them for help.  They realize their own lack of everything which is required, and sometimes become more than a little discouraged and fearful.  ‘Sooner or later’ they feel, ‘someone will come to me for what I cannot give, and go away disappointed.’

There are words in the two stories of the feeding of the two multitudes which can help.  ‘Shall we go and buy?’  ‘How many loaves have ye?  Go and see.’  And when He had taken the five loaves and two fishes, He looked up to heaven, and blessed, and brake the loaves, and gave them to His disciples, and the two fishes He divided.  And they did all eat, and were filled.  And they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments, and of the fishes.

Then on the second occasion, ‘From whence can a man satisfy these men?’  ‘How many loaves have ye?’  And He took their seven loaves, and gave thanks, and brake, and gave; and also a few small fishes.  So they did eat, and were filled: and they took up of… that was left seven baskets.

Five loaves or seven, two fishes or a few, nothing was sufficient to meet the need.  All was as little as this that we have to offer now.  But if only we give all we have, just as it is in its littleness, into His hands to be dealt with as He wills, it will be multiplied. It will be enough for all He wants to do with it, and more than enough.

Let us give all we have to give, to be blessed and broken in His hands.

oooOOOooo

These words are from ’Whispers of His Power’ a collection of writings that Amy Carmichael wrote for her ‘children’ and others associated with the Dohnavur Fellowship and are Copyright © The Dohnavur Fellowship 1982

Unless otherwise stated, biblical quotations are from the Authorized King James Version of the Bible.

The following abbreviations are used to refer to other versions and sources:

BCP:               Book of Common Prayer, the Great Bible of Coverdale

Conybeare:       W. J. Conybeare, The Epistles of Paul (a translation)

Delitzsch:        F. Delitzsch, Notes on Job and the Psalms

Kay:                W. Kay, The Psalms (a translation)

LXX:              The Septuagint

Moffatt:           J. Moffatt, The New Testament: a new translation

Rotherham:      J. B. Rotherham, The Emphasized Bible Revised Version

RV:                 Revised Version

Way:              A. Way, The Letters of St Paul (a translation)

Westcott:        F. Westcott, Notes on the Gospel of St John

Weymouth:      R. F. Weymouth, The New Testament in Modern Speech

Young:            R. Young, A Literal Translation of the Bible

Verses of poetry without quotation marks were written by Amy Carmichael.