"Beads of Joy" by RosaryManJim: They All Ate

BEADS OF JOY 01-08-19

“They All Ate”

My Friends,

Today’s Gospel:

Mark 6:34-44 (The Feeding of the Five Thousand)

“As he went ashore, he saw a great throng, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things. And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, "This is a lonely place, and the hour is now late; send them away, to go into the country and villages round about and buy themselves something to eat." But he answered them, "You give them something to eat." And they said to him, "Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread, and give it to them to eat?" And he said to them, "How many loaves have you? Go and see." And when they had found out, they said, "Five, and two fish." Then he commanded them all to sit down by companies upon the green grass. So, they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven, and blessed, and broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples to set before the people; and he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.”

Reflection:
Just as Parables of Jesus are exciting and fill me with so much joy doing my research; I must say the same excitement and joy fill my heart when I research the Miracles of Jesus. Today we look at Mark 6:34-44 (The Feeding of the Five Thousand). There is one special find in this particular miracle, it's the only one that can be found in all four gospels, there must be some significance to that. (Matthew 14:13-21 / Luke 9:10-17 / John 6:1-15). It is clear that Jesus' concern for our physical needs are just as important as our spiritual needs are.

The history behind this miracle is that just prior to this Jesus had retreated to the desert for spiritual refreshment. John the Baptist had just been murdered and this was a foreshadowing on Jesus' own death within the next year. So, this sort of rest period just prior to this miracle wasn't only for Himself but it would also be good for His disciples. This rest time was short lived but with Jesus that's never a problem. There are few of us who can turn disappointment into something so wonderful like Jesus does. Jesus already knew what was going to happen, that is why after the disciples asked Him to dismiss the crowd so they can go eat, He told them to "give them some food yourselves" Jesus wanted to know what they had, they showed Him five loaves (they were said to be barley loaves, the food of the poor), they also had two fish (they too were most likely sardines, salty and commonly used as relish on the bread).

Well we can see by the available food that it would be hard to even call it a modest snack, let alone feed thousands. This miracle would soon show that Jesus is able to prepare a table of plenty anywhere. Let's keep in mind there were 5,000 men alone, not counting women or children, we can only imagine their number must have been considerable. This miracle is going to be beyond magnificent, the Eucharistic act Jesus is about to do will feed thousands. Consider this: Just moments before Jesus took the loaves and fish, a young lad had to surrender all he had to Jesus, leaving nothing for himself. The trust must have been immeasurable.

We can see by the results that surrendering what little they had Jesus took it, thanked God for it and then multiplied it. Can we do the same with what we possess? Can we do the same with everything we possess? Would you be willing to fully surrender to Jesus what little you have in all that you have? This wonderful miracle gives us the chance to build a solid sincere faith in our Lord's promise to always provide for us. It's obvious there must have been some really incredible enthusiasm created by such a fantastic miracle. Jesus the Bread of Life, took all that was surrendered to Him; multiplied that to fill everyone till they were satisfied. All Jesus needs from us is whatever we have and with that He multiples all our generosity to help others.

Trust in Jesus, He is never limited by what we don't have.

Daily Reading for Tuesday
January 8th, 2019

Bishop Robert Barron on

Spiritual Food

LOVE YOU GUYS !!!!

Your brother in Christ Jesus
And His Most Blessed Mother,
Jim (The Rosary Man) Dacey Jr OFS

Today is Tuesday: We pray the Sorrowful Mysteries:

The Sorrowful Mysteries

1^.Agony on the Garden (Sorrow for sin) –Matt 26:36-46
2^.Scourging at the Pillar (Purity) –Mark 15:1-16
3^.Crowning with Thorns (Moral Courage) –Matt 27:27-31
4^.Carrying of the Cross (Patience) –Mark 15:20-22
5^.The Crucifixion (Perseverance) –Luke 23:33-46

Thank you Lord for loving us so much…