Greetings, Dear Friends!

Susie Larson here...

And to those visiting, I say welcome! I post every Wednesday and my sole purpose is to nourish your soul along the way. Each month I give away a $10.00 Starbucks gift card to someone who posts on my blog. So leave a comment, share a story or insight, and just maybe you'll win a jolt of java for you and a friend! 

Two quick announcements:

In celebration of my newest release, Growing Grateful Kids, I'm giving away a 4G-I-pod Shuffle to someone who posts a book review on Amazon (only one week left on this promotion!). Go to my Facebook page, click on the Free I-pod! tab for more information. My quarterly E-zine goes out on July 15th and I'll announce the winner at that time.

My new radio show, Live the Promise with Susie Larson launched several weeks ago (airs noon to 1:00 CST every Saturday)! My guest this Saturday is clinical social worker and author Leslie Vernick. We'll talk about her new book, "Lord, I Just Want to be Happy." Is happiness our right as Believers? You may be surprised by her answer. Be sure to listen in! For more information, go to: www.faith900.com 

Now, on to my topic...

This morning I re-read my blog post from last week simply because my thoughts continue to linger around the significance of Jesus' encounters with His disciples described in the Gospel of Mark. 

Let's take a look at the first several verses in chapter eight:

In those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, “I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat. And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar.” 

First, we notice from this passage, that as serious Christ followers, Jesus will make us aware of the needs around us. He will draw us to Him to show us them. And that's where we must start when facing a loaves and fishes need. We must draw near to God - and He will draw near to us. 

I've never been one to think that the need dictates the call. We are surrounded by countless needs, and we have the capacity to burn ourselves out by running to and fro, trying to be the answer to everyone's problems. That's why drawing near is essential. We have to get our marching orders from Him.

Jesus had compassion on the multitudes who came out to meet Him. Out of His compassion, He brought the vast need of the people before His disciples. 

The disciples responded this way: “How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?”

Look closely at their question. In essence they are asking, "How can one, or even a few of us, satisfy (translation: fill up to overflowing) such a vast need when it's only us?"

When faced with a gigantic task or insurmountable problem, we do the same thing. We look at the mountain, and then, we look down at our little feet and wonder how in the world we'll ever pull this off. But I love Jesus' response to them. He simply asked them, "Well, what do you have?" In essence, He is saying here, "Let's start there. Give what you have." 

But the thing is, even though 'what we have' falls woefully short of the vast need before us, make no mistake about it - giving 'what we have' will cost us. A lot. He's not asking for our leftovers or that we skim off the top of our resources and hand those over. Have you noticed in these multiplication stories how much was given before the miracle came? All of it.

When we are faced with a vast need, though our offering may be small in proportion to the need, it's not an easy give. We still have to lay it all on the line, go out on a limb, and give of ourselves in ways that sometimes make us tired and self-aware.

Divine efficiency starts with small offerings, to be sure. But to be a part of a loaves and fishes - divine multiplication miracle - we need to be all in, fully present, willing to step up and take a risk with our offering.

Of course, we know how the story ends in Mark chapter eight. Thousands of people ate to fullness with baskets leftover. We serve a more-than-enough God.

Now let's go back to Mark 6 where Jesus had just multiplied the bread to feed - count 'em - five thousand men (not counting women and children!). Try to get your mind around that miracle. In the next scene the disciples were out in a boat when the storms hit. When Jesus walked out to them and calmed the storm, they were amazed. I would have been as well.

But 'amazement' wasn't what God was after. In fact, Scripture tells us that they were only amazed because their hearts were hardened, for they had not understood the significance of Christ's previous miracle.

Here's the crux of it all: it's not enough for us to vacillate back and forth between anxiety and awe as we walk with God. If we want to be mightily used of God, we cannot be like Dori in 'Finding Nemo' and constantly struggle with short-term-memory loss when it comes to the previous faithfulness of God. 

At some point, we have to acquire an inner knowing - a core understanding of what it means to be an heir of God - a joint heir with Christ. You know, our association with the Most High God is a really big deal. 

If we want to be part of the divine multiplication process that is consistently presented in Scripture, we need to be all in, ready to give what God asks of us, and then, be expectant that He'll take it from there, and do the impossible. And when it's all said and done, we'll look back, shake our heads, and know for sure - that we serve a God of Divine Efficiency.

Have a blessed week!

PS ~ I'll be away from my office next week (and out of cell phone range) so I'll look forward to connecting with you again on the 21st of July.