Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest. (Mark 6:31) These are the words of Jesus when he and his disciples had been so pressed by the crowds seeking healing that they did not even have time to eat. They are sweet words of concern for his followers. They all attempted to leave, but the crowds followed them seeking more of Jesus.

It was not to the disciples, but to the crowd that Jesus turned: So he began to teach them many things. Jesus turned from the respite he knew he and his disciples needed, to the teaching of “many things” about his Father God. ( Mark 6:34)Tired and hungry, Jesus taught and shared himself with a crowd that eventually reached at least five thousand men. This is the moment remembered as the “feeding of the five thousand” when Jesus broke five loaves of bread and two fish into enough pieces to feed five thousand plus, and had baskets full of leftovers. (Mark 6: 38-44).

After Jesus’ resurrection he met Peter and six other disciples by the Sea of Galilee where they had gone to fish. Jesus three times singled out Peter with a charge : “Do you love me?” Then, “Feed my sheep.” (John 21:15-17). From all that Peter had witnessed in his three years with Jesus he must have known that “feeding the sheep” would mean denying his own hunger and tiredness, that the task would last a lifetime, and that it was the deepest purpose of his life.

Coming apart together to rest with Jesus sounds very welcoming, until I remember that Jesus’ invitation was interrupted by teeming crowds who needed him: When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd.” (Mark 6:34). His compassion outweighed his own fatigue and hunger, and Peter witnessed it first hand.

I believe that God’s love for His people outweighs every other consideration in His relationship to us. I believe that we cannot measure that love, yet in every generation there are disciples , even now, hearing His voice and feeding His sheep.

Love in Him,

Prue