LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Tuesday 3rd January 2023
GATHER THE FRAGMENTS
Scripture Reading: John 6
So when they were filled, He said to His disciples, “Gather up the fragments that remain, so that nothing is lost.” Therefore they gathered them up, and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves which were left over by those who had eaten. John 6:12-13
Faced with a hungry crowd, Jesus miraculously satisfied everyone’s appetite. There was even quite a bit of food left over that Jesus instructed His disciples to collect to avoid waste.
• Gather up the fragments that remain. After such a miraculous display of God’s provision, why would Jesus be concerned about the leftover meal? He could just recreate the miracle and the people would be fed again. However, from the passage we learn an important principle that God never wastes what He gives us.
No matter how much God increases you, if you don’t know how to gather, you will lose everything. Increase is meaningful when we are able to gather all that the Lord has given to us. God never wastes His gifts and grace He gives us. As you begin the new year, you must be conscious of all that God has given to you and use them efficiently.
• So that nothing is lost. Gathering preserves the harvest. When He blesses us, He expects that we don’t waste His blessings or use them frivolously. Jesus was as concerned about feeding the people as He was about preserving what was left. When we trivialize God’s blessings in our lives, we end up losing it all.
God has blessed us with 365 days and how we use each minute, hour, week, month and the entire year will determine where we will be at the end of the year.
• They filled twelve baskets with fragments. The miracle of feeding 5000 men started with five loaves of bread and two fish but when the disciples chose to obey Jesus’ instruction to gather the leftovers, they collected far more than what they initially had in their hands.
If you choose to be prudent with the resources that God brings your way, this year, you will have far more in your hands than you began the year with.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, you have given me so much. Grant me the wisdom to preserve your blessings in my life. In Jesus’ name, Amen!