Mark 8:1-10 -- “In those days when there was again a great crowd without anything to eat, He called his disciples and said to them, ‘I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will faint on the way – and some of them have come from a great distance.’ His disciples replied, ‘How can one feed these people with bread here in the desert?’ He asked them, ‘How many loaves do you have?’ They said, ‘Seven.’ Then He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground; and He took the seven loaves, and after giving thanks He broke them and gave them to His disciples to distribute; and they distributed them to the crowd. They had also a few small fish; and after blessing them, He ordered that these too should be distributed. They ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Now there were about four thousand people. And He sent them away. And immediately He got into the boat with his disciples and went to the district of Dalmanutha.”
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Today we see the second time in the Gospels where Christ has fed many with little. He takes a minimal amount and, after blessing, breaking and sharing it, makes it much greater than the small portion with which He started.
Although the miracles of feeding four thousand people with just seven loaves and a few small fish is an awesome thing to witness, there is more here for us to see. The act of sharing might be the most interesting part of this miracle. The meal, having been offered up in thanksgiving and shared becomes plentiful and an immensely larger blessing than how it started.
When we hear about a friend who needs support through his wife’s illness, a family torn apart by grief or a community brought down by a natural disaster, why is our first inclination to ask others to pray? Once news of a prayer request has been shared with you, don’t you often send out an email or call a friend, asking them to pray too? From where does this compulsion come? I believe that deep down, we recognize that a burden shared is a burden lessened. Prayer is powerful. The more people who are praying about a need, the more powerful that prayer becomes.
Let’s also not forget that we can offer prayer in praise and thanksgiving for the good things. It is not hard to see that joy shared in prayer is joy multiplied. Think about that feeling you get when you hear good news, when you become aware of a blessing someone received or even a prayer answered. You are filled with joy and want to pass it along. When we offer thanksgiving and praise to God our Father in prayer, we are making the joy associated with that prayer more powerful as well.
We all get the emails on a regular basis where someone we know is personally effected by struggle or become aware of a stranger for whom prayers are needed. If you get a lot of them, it is easy to push them aside, almost discounting them as unwanted distractions. But really, how long does it take to say a simple prayer for someone in need? 5 seconds...10...30...one minute? We often say to someone who has asked for prayer or whom has shared a concern, “I’ll be praying for you”. How often do we stop right there...right at that very moment...and offer this up to God? I know I don’t. I think, “OK. Later today I’ll pray for that person.” Alas, the business of the day and demands on our time push that prayer into the background. Maybe at best we remember a couple days later to pray for that person. All it takes is a little prayer, a tiny moment to take up and share the burden.
So, are you carrying a weight, a burden or pain that is pressing you down? Share it with others in prayer. Many hands make light work. “Yet it was good of you to share in my troubles.” (Philippians 4:14). Have you been given a great gift, joy or answer to a prayer? Pass the joy along to your friends and loved ones. “Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown her great mercy, and they shared her joy.” (Luke 1:58). Have faith that your joy is multiplied and your sorrows diminished when you share each of these with friends.
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