A balanced diet

‘How much bread have you got?’ Jesus asked
‘Seven loaves’, they answered.
He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then he took the seven loaves, gave thanks to God broke them, and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the crowd; and the disciples did so. They also had a few small fish. Jesus gave thanks for these, and told the disciples to distribute them too. Everybody ate and had enough – there were about four thousand people.   (verses 5-8a)

Read Mark 8: 1-10

Jesus had been with these people, teaching them, for three days. He had fed them generously with the best spiritual food they could get: the word of God. But now they were physically hungry. So Jesus just as generously, and to us miraculously, fed them through his blessing of the seven loaves and the few small fish. The people received a balanced diet of spiritual and physical food.
Few of us lack food for our bodies. Our fast food industry sees to that. But what is the balance between our intake of spiritual and physical food? We may be the best fed nation physically but starving and malnourished spiritually. And that can be our own personal story too.
That need not be. The Christ who fed the four thousand so generously has not forgotten the spiritual need for food of his countless thousands. His spirit-bearing word is given to feed our souls. His own body and blood, given in his holy supper are his way of nourishing our spirits. May we enjoy these blessings Jesus gives, so that our body and spirit food intake form a balanced diet.

Lord Jesus, feed all who are physically and spiritually hungry. Amen.

by Bob Turnbull, in ‘New Strength for each Day’ (LCA, Openbook, 1998)

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