Too small. Certainly not very fancy. Prepared only for one. Home-made. Common. So what use could it be, especially to a crowd?

Perhaps these are thoughts that ran through the little boy’s mind as he carried his lunch to the hillside for the teachings of Jesus. His plans were simple. Listen and eat my loaves and fish–the same lunch more than likely had been eaten on other days like this. [John 6:1-14]

Never could he imagine that anyone would be interested in what was inside that sack. He might have wished for it to be more enticing, such as leftovers from a royal table. Instead it was only an everyday common meal. In spite of his quandary, he determined he would be thankful; it would fill his tummy.

Then the disciple had the nerve to ask for it. His simple lunch…this plain, unattractive meal that his mom had prepared for him that morning. What could this man want to do with his lunch? Why would he even be interested in it? The hungry crowd watched carefully. Jesus’ disciples were concerned about the gathering numbers and wanted them all to leave because of the pressure.

Five barley loaves and two small fish = a simple meal. Jesus told the disciples it was not necessary to go away due to the crowds. He challenged them to give the collected people something to eat. So the disciples instructed them to gather in groups of 50; there were 100 such groups. Thus, the crowd was 5,000 men, beside women and children. The Lord gave thanks, broke the loaves, and then His disciples distributed them to the people.

Just in case the disciples concluded the meager meal was far too small, they were instructed to pass out the food themselves. What had been blessed by the Lord and was passed to the crowd by their own hands would never be forgotten. A little boy’s lunch was more than enough.

What’s in our simple little sack? What could we offer that we otherwise might deem insufficient? The Multiplier receives and blesses what we place in His hands. He causes it then to meet the needs of many–far more than would have been satisfied had we kept it to ourselves. He values even the little we have to offer.