Making Do with Leftovers
Children's sermon
Illustration
Preaching
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For July 28, 2024:
Making Do with Leftovers
by Dean Feldmeyer
2 Kings 4:42-44, John 6:1-21
I was the oldest of five kids. When I was growing up, Sunday evening dinner was always a big occasion and one of my favorite meals of the week.
Sunday night was what my mom called “Leftover Buffet” and it was my favorite because: 1.) It was always a feast and, 2.) I knew there would be something left over from the week before that I liked, maybe even loved. A little tuna casserole, some spaghetti and meatballs, a dab of pot roast, a couple of burgers, a chicken leg and thigh, some home fried potatoes and, if all that wasn’t enough, Mom would fry up a platter of eggs for the buffet table. If none of that satisfied your needs and desires, there was always a box of cereal or a jar of peanut butter on the counter.
I so loved that tradition that I carried it over to my own family’s Sunday night table. Even though the crowd was smaller, the leftover buffet was still a feast and a family favorite.
It wasn’t until I was explaining the genesis of the leftover buffet to my kids that I realized its theological significance.
We were so fortunate, so rich, that nearly every night we actually had food left over at the end of the meal, food that we would bring out, reheat, and enjoy later in the week. We considered ourselves clever when we could take those leftovers and reimagine them into some new kind of meal.
The implications of that fact went beyond our family’s kitchen.
We live in a country that’s so rich we have to advertise to sell bread, where one of the greatest health problems is obesity, where farmers throw away literally tons of table food to rot in the fields because it does not look pretty enough to display and sell in the grocery store.
Yet, our politicians insist that our resources are precious and few and must be horded and protected from immigrants and poor people in other countries lest they rip them from our weak and trembling hands.
So, which is it? Are we one of the richest countries in the world with resources so abundant we can throw them away if they don’t look perfect? Or are we on the verge of depravation and starvation because undeserving outsiders are stealing our meager resources from us?
Which is it?
In the News
It’s an election year, the time when politicians go out to do battle with each other and the battles will inevitably include things like immigration, foreign aid, and welfare — all of which will be portrayed as bad. Many of the arguments will be based in the fear that resources are precious and few and must be horded, protected from those who would steal them — especially immigrants.
Immigrants, we are told by those seeking election, are stealing “Black jobs” and “Hispanic jobs.” What, we may wonder, are Black and Hispanic jobs? I certainly don’t know but I suspect the speaker is talking about the ones that are at the bottom of the minimum wage pay scale. But it’s not as though there are thousands of native-born Americans going unemployed because they can’t get those jobs. One need spend only a couple of hours driving around suburbia to count scores of “help wanted” and “we’re hiring” signs on businesses of all kinds.
When deciding whether we’re a land of plenty or a land of scarcity we might want to consider some numbers, like:
Every year, we spend $552.8 billion on recreation, an increase of $107 billion over the past decade even allowing for a serious dip during the Covid pandemic. We blow $110 billion annually on fast food, $95.5 billion for coffee, and $57.2 billion on video games.
Even after adjusting for cost-of-living differences, a typical American earns an income that is ten times the income received by the typical person in the world. By world standards, we are rich. All of us.
As a whole, however, Americans don’t get that.
In a study conducted for the Washington Post by Yale PhD candidate Gautam Nair, “The average US resident estimated that the global median individual income is about $20,000 a year. In fact, the real answer is about a tenth of that figure: roughly $2,100 per year. Similarly, Americans typically place themselves in the top 37 percent of the world’s income distribution. However, the vast majority of US residents rank comfortably in the top 10 percent.”
Yes, inflation has brought prices up and made many of us tighten our budgets, especially where big ticket items are concerned, but we still seem to be able to find money for frivolous things. Maybe we’re not as financially fragile and economically endangered as politicians and pundits would have us believe.
Where, one wonders, does all this fear come from?
That same Washington Post study suggests that most of it comes from a simple lack of understanding. We pick up bad information from various sources — unscrupulous politicians, power hungry media pundits, social media “influencers,” our next-door neighbor, the guys at the barbershop, or the girls at the hairdresser — and we accept it uncritically and let it inform our other opinions and make us stingy. But when we get correct information from trustworthy sources we tend to loosen up, lighten up, and become more generous.
Today’s gospel lesson from John and the alternative Old Testament lesson from 2 Kings suggest that correcting bad information may not be the only way to becoming kinder and more generous. Another way has to do with adjusting our attitudes, especially where faith is concerned.
In the Scripture
In the alternative Old Testament lesson for this week (2 Kings 4:42-44) there is a famine in the land of Gilgal and people are going hungry. A group of about 100 prophets have come together under Elisha’s leadership to discuss what, if anything, can be done when an anonymous man brings some barley bread and grain to give to Elisha.
Elisha’s servants accept the gift on his behalf and bring it to the prophet who tells them to “give it to the people,” but they are afraid that the twenty small loaves and a few heads of grain won’t be enough for all 100 people. Such a small amount will only serve to cause problems as the people fight over it.
Elisha tells them that he has received word from the LORD that the people “shall eat and have some left.” In other words, not only will the twenty loaves be enough, they will be more than enough. And sure enough, when the bread is served, it turns out to be more than enough.
There are leftovers. Go figure.
The gospel lesson tells us a story that is not unlike the Elisha story and may, in fact, find is origins in the account of Elisha and the barley loaves.
Jesus and the twelve are together on a mountainside and a large crowd of people find them and gather around, about five thousand in all. Jesus notes to Philip and Andrew that it’s late and nearly supper time and, we are told that, just to mess with Philip, he asks him if there are any stores nearby where they can buy enough bread to feed five thousand people on the spur of the moment.
Philip responds: “Uh, excuse me, Lord, but the resources with which I have come to this situation with are insufficient for the task that you have set before me. I could use a little help.”
Nah, just kidding. What Phillip actually does is point out to Jesus that if all twelve disciples worked all day every day for a month, they wouldn’t make enough money to feed a crowd this size.
Andrew, Peter’s brother, sheepishly allows that he has found a boy who was possibly on his way home after shopping for dinner for his family who has five barley loaves (coincidentally, exactly the same kind of loaves as appeared in the Elisha story, above) and two fishes. Apparently, the boy has agreed to share what he has to help feed the crowd, but Andrew is skeptical. Of what use is this pittance when we need enough to feed five thousand?
Jesus tells them to have the people all sit down on the grass. He says a prayer of thanks and he distributes the fish and bread to the people, allowing each person to take as much as they want. They do, they eat, and they are all satisfied. The disciples pick up twelve baskets of leftovers.
Leftovers. Pretty impressive, huh?
In the Sermon
My mother used to allow that her children could take on their plate as much as they wanted. But she also admonished us to not take more than we needed or could eat. “Don’t let your eyes be bigger than your stomach,” she would say.
This was especially true on those rare occasions when we ate out at restaurant. “Order as much as you want,” she would say. “But don’t get more than you can eat.”
She was a child of the Great Depression and, while she lived on a successful farm and never wanted for a sufficiency of food, she saw deprivation all around her. People standing in line at soup kitchens, waiting patiently, their faces drawn and etched with despair; people coming around waking slowly and hesitantly up the lane to ask for work or, failing that, a handout of food, which her mother or grandmother always provided; people gleaning for coal beneath the train resell where it fell from the coal cars; people gleaning bruised apples on the ground in the orchard where they were left after Grandpa picked up most for making cider.
Most of our parents, grandparents, and great grandparents who grew up during the Great Depression could probably tell similar stories. Poverty and hunger were visible things that they saw often.
Today, we tend to hide our poor people, shunting them off into ghetto housing projects and arresting them when they create tent cities that block the sidewalks. We urge them to go to homeless shelters and the modern versions of Depression-era soup kitchens. We open cooling centers in the summer and warming centers in the winter.
When it comes time to fund these programs, we send their administrators to the government or charitable organizations to apply for grants that are well monitored and audited to within an inch of their lives. When they come to us with their hand out, asking for donations, we carefully count every penny to make sure we aren’t being cheated or that our precious resources are not going to feed someone who is unworthy of our largess.
Why? Because we have, one way or another, become convinced that, as we said in the beginning, “The resources with which we have come to this situation are insufficient for the task that has been set before us.”
And yet, scripture teaches us that on those occasions when we step out in faith and share our seemingly inadequate resources generously, they are somehow always more than enough. There are always leftovers — enough to feed yet another multitude.
If the people are going unfed it is not because we lack resources but because we lack faith. We are afraid to be generous because we don’t trust God to use what we give responsibly. We know that God is generous to a fault and expects us to do the same.
Jesus has given us a formula for success, however, a way to make our little enough and more than enough. It’s a formula that appears in the story and it has six easy steps:
SECOND THOUGHTS
Choices
by Katy Stenta
2 Samuel 11:1-15
“I know Donald Trump’s type,” Kamala Harris proclaims as she opens up her presidential race, talking about those who she has prosecuted before, naming Trump for who he is. We seem to be at a fulcrum of history in our election in the United States, where naming who people are and what they have done is really important.
When it looked like Biden might have to step down, I and many people I know, were afraid because we knew that, as a woman and a person of color — of an Asian and African American woman, the battle would be tough. The racism and misogyny will be, as my kids might phrase it, epic.
In the story of David and Bathsheba, Bathsheba is a named woman, who is remembered for her tragic circumstances. Dr. Wil Gafney says, “What most people seem to remember about Bathsheba is the worst day of her life, maybe the worst few days: the day David raped her, the day David killed her husband, the day she realized she would have to marry her rapist, the day the baby David raped into her died as his punishment for his sin against her husband and against God. That it was rape and not adultery as the victim blamers say.” She is remembered for her trauma, but at some point, she chose to live, to live and to be a mother to her children. “It seems to me she made up her mind to have the best life she could under the circumstances.” Bathsheba is not just remembered for this, because, as Dr. Gafney points out, she is the grandmother of Jesus.
Biden will be remembered not just as the man who was too frail to continue, but the man who stepped down for his country. He has changed the story with a choice. First choosing a woman vice president, and then by following through in supporting her and stepping down. How amazing our choices can be.
Now Harris is making choices to name Trump’s sins out loud, and to juxtapose them against the woman that she is. The naming of these differences are her strength. It is quite a Bathsheba move.
David was an ass, but, as one of Dr. Gafney’s students once remarked in her class, at least he was God’s ass. Thus, the Psalms are full of David’s repentance and listening for God. It is perhaps too much to hope of such behavior from Trump. However, we can hope that we can do as well. To admit when we fail, to admit that we too are imperfect, to identify who we are and who we aren’t, and to step into the presence of God remembering that our choices are important. God wants us to choose — and God will pick us up whenever we stumble and fall.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:
John 6:1-21
Letting Go of Perfection
When Jesus feeds the crowd, he isn’t worried about perfection — he’s aiming for sustenance, and for a deeper bond with God. Shaylyn Romney Garrett challenged herself to host people in her home, also seeking deeper connections. There were plenty of reasons not to have people in her home: The cleaning, the stress, the family budget, working full-time. Still, she say, “As part of a year-long personal journey to find ways of strengthening my own sense of community and connection, I challenged myself to host people in my home at least once a week. Four gatherings of friends or neighbors in my home in just 30 days.”
She says one big lesson was that “perfection is the enemy of connection,” adding, “When I first started hosting people, it would take me days to prepare. The floors had to be swept and mopped, the carpets vacuumed, and the toilets scrubbed. My unfinished projects had to be gathered up and hidden away, and every marker, crayon, and toy returned to its proper place. Social media’s culture of curation has conditioned us to believe that only our most polished face is socially acceptable…Once I let go of the need to put forward a perfected picture of domestic bliss, it finally felt possible to have friends in my home on a regular basis. And the freedom to be fully me — mess and all — was liberating. It was also an important part of laying the groundwork for true and meaningful connection. Our perfected selves may be magazine-worthy, but are often unapproachable, even forbidding.”
Jesus has no such worries, and invites us into a world of food and grace without worrying about what’s imperfect.
* * *
Ephesians 3:14-21
Strength
The letter to the Ephesians contains a beautiful prayer, with the writer saying, “I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit.” Strength grows through challenging experiences.
Church consultant Peter Steinke observes, “In the Biosphere in Arizona, a three-acre greenhouse in the desert, people noticed that the fruit was falling off the trees prematurely. What had happened? Inside this encapsulated environment, wind, a force that challenges the trees’ branches and strengthens them, is absent. Without wind, the branches do not gain sufficient strength to hold the fruit to the time of maturation.” (from Uproar: Calm Leadership in Anxious Times)
* * *
Ephesians 3:14-21
Connecting
The letter to the Ephesians sees a deep connection between people, based on our shared rootedness in God. Many days, that connection is difficult to feel.
Anne Lamott writes about the ways we find that connection, as individuals, and in wider ways.
“You’ll be at some horrible party you couldn’t get out of and everybody’s making small talk, and your entire being seizes up, but then suddenly you glimpse your person across the room, your partner or friend, your dad, a co-conspirator. There is a blip of eye contact, and it is a beautiful cellular moment of connection. That can happen on a communal level sometimes, as when sober alcoholics find some other sober people in their meeting rooms, even if they don’t understand the language being spoken. Or two families with troubled teens who make eye contact at a gathering of ebullient, successful kids, and exchange expressions of sympathy, of “make this stop.” Those are we moments we can’t even name because they’re so holy. People say pain shared is pain divided. In shared pain, the true self shows: Fragile, vulnerable, interdependent, and needy. And there’s something strong and wonderful about that.” (from Somehow Thoughts on Love)
* * *
Psalm 14
Who Is Wise?
The psalmist writes, “The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind / to see if there are any who are wise.”
In a world where wisdom seems to have gone missing, there are still wise people among us. Shane Parrish writes about an interview with gerontologist Karl Pillemer, author of 30 Lessons for Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans. Pillemer says, “I kept meeting older people — many of whom had lost loved ones, been through tremendous difficulties, and had serious health problems — but who nevertheless were happy, fulfilled, and deeply enjoying life.” The people who were interviewed had wisdom like: “Say things now to people you care about — whether it’s expressing gratitude, asking forgiveness, or getting information. Spend the maximum amount of time with your children. Savor daily pleasures instead of waiting for “big-ticket items” to make you happy. Work in a job you love. Choose your mate carefully; don’t just rush in.”
The biggest regret: “Worrying about things that never happened.” “Worrying wastes your life,” one respondent said. Pillemer asked one person for the source of her happiness. She thought about it and answered, “In my 89 years, I’ve learned that happiness is a choice — not a condition.”
There are still some who are wise — and we can be among them, even in a challenging season.
* * * * * *
From team member Chris Keating:
2 Samuel 11:1-15
A rape by any other name
Too often, writes scholar Wil Gafney, the church has equivocated in naming David’s assault of Bathsheba as rape, a plight “uncomfortably similar” to others who must “prove to the police and general public that they were raped.”
As many as 75% of rape victims experience victim blaming, with responses ranging from “You were asking for it...” to “Surely you could have said no.” North Carolina politician Mark Robinson, who is the Republican nominee for governor, has an especially long history of making light of sexual assault. Reports indicate that Robinson has questioned the reliability of assault victims for more than a decade — including the victims of abusers like Bill Cosby, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Harvey Weinstein. In one post, Robinson described Harvey Weinstein as a “sacrificial lamb” who was being led to slaughter.
* * *
2 Samuel 11:1-15
Wrestling with the complicated legacies of powerful abusers
Despite committing both assault and murder, David’s legacy looms large within Israel’s history. His story is encased in a thickened shell of both theological and political privilege. Together with other powerful men throughout history, he occupies the position of being simultaneously notable and infamous. Most recently, an investigation by the Catholic church revealed extensive abuse allegations against the Abbe Pierre, an iconic church leader who sheltered Jews during World War II and founded the worldwide Emmaus solidarity community, which has worked for those oppressed by poverty. Other famous church leaders accused of sexual assault include Catholic theologian Jean Vanier, musician David Haas (composer of hymns such as “Come, Live In the Light/We Are Called,” and “You Are Mine”), and Mennonite theologian John Howard Yoder. (Certainly, the list of abusers includes many more lessor known figures.) Such widespread abuse is, as one publication called it, “beyond bad apples,” and forces the church to wrestle with protecting victims by naming despicable acts of violence perpetrated by those who have also made substantial, sometimes even brilliant, contributions.
* * *
2 Kings 4:42-44
Understanding abundance
This text names a particularly tricky problem for Elisha. He aspires to bring good things to the poor of the land, and wishes to make sure the poor are fed. Yet when the offering from the man of Baal-shalishah is presented, it feels as if the offering won’t be enough. The story prefigures some of what is to come in the gospel accounts but is also a standalone example of how the prophets of God trusted in God’s ability to provide.
We rarely trust in such provision today, and instead believe either we or our leaders lack what is needed. When President Joe Biden yielded to mounting pressures to suspend his campaign for reelection, opponents began questioning whether he had enough stamina to continue to lead. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson suggested that “if Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as president,” and called upon Biden to resign. Biden’s historic decision to suspend his campaign was itself the result of constant questions about whether the impact of his age and health limited his ability to lead the nation.
Jonathan Westover writes that among the leaders he often coaches, some tend to approach challenges like budget constraints and limited resources from a paradigm of scarcity. “They tend to see it as a fixed pie, a zero-sum game.” As a result, Westover suggests they lead from positions of fear by chasing easy wins. “In contrast,” he writes, “occasionally I observe leaders or colleagues who seemingly reject the scarcity paradigm, replacing it with an abundance mindset. Despite the reality of limited resources that we all face, these individuals see challenges and obstacles as opportunities for learning and innovation. They adopt a growth mindset and constantly work to develop new skills, competencies and capabilities.”
* * *
Psalm 145:10-18, Ephesians 3:14-21
A kingdom of glory and love
A recent speech from Senator Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, has been hailed as a call to embrace Christian nationalism. Hawley said the United States is a nation “defined by the dignity of the common man as given to us in the Christian religion.”
“I'm sure some will say now that I am calling America a Christian nation. And so I am. And some will say that I am advocating Christian nationalism. And so I do... my question is, is there any other kind worth having?” He continued, “the truth is, Christian nationalism is not a threat to American democracy.”
Yet, such nationalism seems to be at odds with scripture, including both this week’s psalm and Epistle readings. Psalm 145, while speaking to a theocratic nation, embodies a broader vision of God’s love and justice than is typically upheld by Christian nationalists — including a reminder of God’s graciousness toward the marginalized, weak, and struggling.
Ephesians, in addition, upholds the notion of God’s universal love that is at odds with the idea of American exceptionalism. Paul seeks to create a communion of love, strengthened by the gift of a cosmic Christ whose power is at work within the church, and not a particular nation.
* * * * * *
WORSHIP
by George Reed
Call to Worship
One: God looks down to see if there are any who are wise.
All: We have all gone astray and no one does what is good.
One: The evildoers eat up God’s children like they are devouring bread.
All: They do not know nor do they call upon God.
One: O that deliverance would come from God’s dwelling place.
All: When justice and righteousness prevail, we will be glad.
OR
One: Come and receive what God has prepared for us.
All: We open our hearts and lives to God’s gifts.
One: God, who provides for all our needs, gives us the Holy Spirit.
All: With thanksgiving we receive the gift of God’s own self.
One: As with all God’s gift, this one is meant to be shared.
All: We will share all that God has graciously given us.
Hymns and Songs
This Is My Father’s World
UMH: 144
H82: 651
PH: 293
GTG: 370
AAHH: 149
NNBH: 41
CH: 59
LBW: 554
ELW: 824
W&P: 21
AMEC: 47
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee
UMH: 89
H82: 376
PH: 464
GTG: 611
AAHH: 120
NNBH: 40
NCH: 4
CH: 2
LBW: 551
ELW: 836
W&P: 59
AMEC: 75
STLT: 29
For the Beauty of the Earth
UMH: 92
H82: 416
PH: 473
GTG: 14
NNBH: 8
NCH: 28
CH: 56
LBW: 561
ELW: 879
W&P: 40
AMEC: 578
STLT 21
For the Fruits of This Creation
UMH: 97
H82: 424
PH: 553
GTG: 36
NCH: 425
CH: 714
LBW: 563
ELW: 679
W&P: 723
Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life
UMH: 427
H82: 609
PH: 408
GTG: 343
NCH: 543
CH: 665
LBW: 429
ELW: 719
W&P: 591
AMEC: 561
Jesu, Jesu
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
GTG: 203
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELW: 708
W&P: 273
Renew: 289
Cuando El Pobre (When the Poor Ones)
UMH: 434
PH: 407
GTG: 762
CH: 662
ELW: 725
W&P: 624
What Does the Lord Require
UMH: 441
H82: 605
PH: 405
CH: 659
W&P: 686
Take My Life, and Let It Be
UMH: 399
H82: 707
PH: 391
GTG: 697:
NNBH: 213
NCH: 448
CH: 609
LBW: 406
ELW: 583/685
W&P: 466
AMEC: 292
Renew: 150
A Charge to Keep I Have
UMH: 413
AAHH: 467/468
NNBH: 436
AMEC: 242
We Worship and Adore You
CCB: 6
Sing unto the Lord a New Song
CCB: 16
Renew: 99
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who creates with lavish abundance:
Grant us the grace to trust in your bounty
as we share our gifts with others;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you create with a lavish abundance. You fill all of creation with good things. Help us to have enough trust in you that we will share your bounty with others. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways we selfishly hoard God’s gifts.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received so much from your hands through this wonderful creation and yet we hoard it like it is just for us. We act like you did not create enough for everyone and we want to get our share. Forgive us in our selfish ways and open our hearts as you have opened yours. Amen.
One: God is generous and gracious and willingly forgives us and blesses us so that we can bless others.
Prayers of the People
Blessed are you, Creator of all that was, and is, and ever shall be. The rich bounty of your creation reflects your overflowing love and grace.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received so much from your hands through this wonderful creation and yet we hoard it like it is just for us. We act like you did not create enough for everyone and we want to get our share. Forgive us our selfish ways and open our hearts as you have opened yours.
We give you thanks for all that you bless us with. You have filled the earth with good things that we delight in. We are blessed with an overabundance. We thank you for those who have generous to us when we have been in need. We thank you for people who work to make sure that all have a share in your bounty.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for your children in need. We pray for those who are hungry and those who are starving. We pray for those who have no employment or whose employment does not provide for their needs. We pray for those who work in underpaid positions so that they can serve others.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN'S SERMON
God, Bless You
by Tom Willadsen
John 6:1-21
After the little ones have gathered up front, sneeze, or pretend to. Chances are someone will say, “Bless you.”
This is your starting point, ask the little ones if they know why people say, “Bless you.” or “God bless you.” after someone sneezes.
Christians have been saying “God bless you.” after someone sneezes for more than a thousand years. Maybe it’s because they believed that when someone sneezes their soul leaves their body and saying “God bless you.” protects the sneezer from having evil spirits rush into the body while the soul has left.
Does that sound crazy to you? I hope it does.
Did you know there’s another time we bless someone?
Jesus did it in the reading from the Bible. The story goes that there was a huge crowd around Jesus and they were hungry. There was nowhere near enough food to feed all the people and the disciples didn’t have enough money to buy food for all of them. There were five thousand people and all they had were five loaves of bread and two fish. It was a big problem for them, even though Jesus told them it was just a test.
The Bible says Jesus gave thanks for the bread. Whom did Jesus thank for the bread? You want them to answer God!
You know what Jesus really did? Jesus blessed God. Think about that—Jesus blessed God. He said a prayer that goes, “Blessed are you, O God, King of the Universe, you have brought forth bread from the earth.”
Next time you say grace before you eat, I hope you will remember that. God blesses us with all kinds of marvelous things. And one way we say “thank you” is that we bless God!
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, July 28, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
- Making Do With Leftovers by Dean Feldmeyer. Uh, excuse me, Lord, but the resources with which I have come to this situation are insufficient for the task that you have set before me. I could use a little help.
- Second Thoughts: Choices by Katy Stenta based on 2 Samuel 11:1-15.
- Sermon illustrations by Mary Austin and Chris Keating.
- Worship resources by George Reed.
- Children's sermon: God, Bless You by Tom Willadsen based on John 6:1-21.
Making Do with Leftoversby Dean Feldmeyer
2 Kings 4:42-44, John 6:1-21
I was the oldest of five kids. When I was growing up, Sunday evening dinner was always a big occasion and one of my favorite meals of the week.
Sunday night was what my mom called “Leftover Buffet” and it was my favorite because: 1.) It was always a feast and, 2.) I knew there would be something left over from the week before that I liked, maybe even loved. A little tuna casserole, some spaghetti and meatballs, a dab of pot roast, a couple of burgers, a chicken leg and thigh, some home fried potatoes and, if all that wasn’t enough, Mom would fry up a platter of eggs for the buffet table. If none of that satisfied your needs and desires, there was always a box of cereal or a jar of peanut butter on the counter.
I so loved that tradition that I carried it over to my own family’s Sunday night table. Even though the crowd was smaller, the leftover buffet was still a feast and a family favorite.
It wasn’t until I was explaining the genesis of the leftover buffet to my kids that I realized its theological significance.
We were so fortunate, so rich, that nearly every night we actually had food left over at the end of the meal, food that we would bring out, reheat, and enjoy later in the week. We considered ourselves clever when we could take those leftovers and reimagine them into some new kind of meal.
The implications of that fact went beyond our family’s kitchen.
We live in a country that’s so rich we have to advertise to sell bread, where one of the greatest health problems is obesity, where farmers throw away literally tons of table food to rot in the fields because it does not look pretty enough to display and sell in the grocery store.
Yet, our politicians insist that our resources are precious and few and must be horded and protected from immigrants and poor people in other countries lest they rip them from our weak and trembling hands.
So, which is it? Are we one of the richest countries in the world with resources so abundant we can throw them away if they don’t look perfect? Or are we on the verge of depravation and starvation because undeserving outsiders are stealing our meager resources from us?
Which is it?
In the News
It’s an election year, the time when politicians go out to do battle with each other and the battles will inevitably include things like immigration, foreign aid, and welfare — all of which will be portrayed as bad. Many of the arguments will be based in the fear that resources are precious and few and must be horded, protected from those who would steal them — especially immigrants.
Immigrants, we are told by those seeking election, are stealing “Black jobs” and “Hispanic jobs.” What, we may wonder, are Black and Hispanic jobs? I certainly don’t know but I suspect the speaker is talking about the ones that are at the bottom of the minimum wage pay scale. But it’s not as though there are thousands of native-born Americans going unemployed because they can’t get those jobs. One need spend only a couple of hours driving around suburbia to count scores of “help wanted” and “we’re hiring” signs on businesses of all kinds.
When deciding whether we’re a land of plenty or a land of scarcity we might want to consider some numbers, like:
Every year, we spend $552.8 billion on recreation, an increase of $107 billion over the past decade even allowing for a serious dip during the Covid pandemic. We blow $110 billion annually on fast food, $95.5 billion for coffee, and $57.2 billion on video games.
Even after adjusting for cost-of-living differences, a typical American earns an income that is ten times the income received by the typical person in the world. By world standards, we are rich. All of us.
As a whole, however, Americans don’t get that.
In a study conducted for the Washington Post by Yale PhD candidate Gautam Nair, “The average US resident estimated that the global median individual income is about $20,000 a year. In fact, the real answer is about a tenth of that figure: roughly $2,100 per year. Similarly, Americans typically place themselves in the top 37 percent of the world’s income distribution. However, the vast majority of US residents rank comfortably in the top 10 percent.”
Yes, inflation has brought prices up and made many of us tighten our budgets, especially where big ticket items are concerned, but we still seem to be able to find money for frivolous things. Maybe we’re not as financially fragile and economically endangered as politicians and pundits would have us believe.
Where, one wonders, does all this fear come from?
That same Washington Post study suggests that most of it comes from a simple lack of understanding. We pick up bad information from various sources — unscrupulous politicians, power hungry media pundits, social media “influencers,” our next-door neighbor, the guys at the barbershop, or the girls at the hairdresser — and we accept it uncritically and let it inform our other opinions and make us stingy. But when we get correct information from trustworthy sources we tend to loosen up, lighten up, and become more generous.
Today’s gospel lesson from John and the alternative Old Testament lesson from 2 Kings suggest that correcting bad information may not be the only way to becoming kinder and more generous. Another way has to do with adjusting our attitudes, especially where faith is concerned.
In the Scripture
In the alternative Old Testament lesson for this week (2 Kings 4:42-44) there is a famine in the land of Gilgal and people are going hungry. A group of about 100 prophets have come together under Elisha’s leadership to discuss what, if anything, can be done when an anonymous man brings some barley bread and grain to give to Elisha.
Elisha’s servants accept the gift on his behalf and bring it to the prophet who tells them to “give it to the people,” but they are afraid that the twenty small loaves and a few heads of grain won’t be enough for all 100 people. Such a small amount will only serve to cause problems as the people fight over it.
Elisha tells them that he has received word from the LORD that the people “shall eat and have some left.” In other words, not only will the twenty loaves be enough, they will be more than enough. And sure enough, when the bread is served, it turns out to be more than enough.
There are leftovers. Go figure.
The gospel lesson tells us a story that is not unlike the Elisha story and may, in fact, find is origins in the account of Elisha and the barley loaves.
Jesus and the twelve are together on a mountainside and a large crowd of people find them and gather around, about five thousand in all. Jesus notes to Philip and Andrew that it’s late and nearly supper time and, we are told that, just to mess with Philip, he asks him if there are any stores nearby where they can buy enough bread to feed five thousand people on the spur of the moment.
Philip responds: “Uh, excuse me, Lord, but the resources with which I have come to this situation with are insufficient for the task that you have set before me. I could use a little help.”
Nah, just kidding. What Phillip actually does is point out to Jesus that if all twelve disciples worked all day every day for a month, they wouldn’t make enough money to feed a crowd this size.
Andrew, Peter’s brother, sheepishly allows that he has found a boy who was possibly on his way home after shopping for dinner for his family who has five barley loaves (coincidentally, exactly the same kind of loaves as appeared in the Elisha story, above) and two fishes. Apparently, the boy has agreed to share what he has to help feed the crowd, but Andrew is skeptical. Of what use is this pittance when we need enough to feed five thousand?
Jesus tells them to have the people all sit down on the grass. He says a prayer of thanks and he distributes the fish and bread to the people, allowing each person to take as much as they want. They do, they eat, and they are all satisfied. The disciples pick up twelve baskets of leftovers.
Leftovers. Pretty impressive, huh?
In the Sermon
My mother used to allow that her children could take on their plate as much as they wanted. But she also admonished us to not take more than we needed or could eat. “Don’t let your eyes be bigger than your stomach,” she would say.
This was especially true on those rare occasions when we ate out at restaurant. “Order as much as you want,” she would say. “But don’t get more than you can eat.”
She was a child of the Great Depression and, while she lived on a successful farm and never wanted for a sufficiency of food, she saw deprivation all around her. People standing in line at soup kitchens, waiting patiently, their faces drawn and etched with despair; people coming around waking slowly and hesitantly up the lane to ask for work or, failing that, a handout of food, which her mother or grandmother always provided; people gleaning for coal beneath the train resell where it fell from the coal cars; people gleaning bruised apples on the ground in the orchard where they were left after Grandpa picked up most for making cider.
Most of our parents, grandparents, and great grandparents who grew up during the Great Depression could probably tell similar stories. Poverty and hunger were visible things that they saw often.
Today, we tend to hide our poor people, shunting them off into ghetto housing projects and arresting them when they create tent cities that block the sidewalks. We urge them to go to homeless shelters and the modern versions of Depression-era soup kitchens. We open cooling centers in the summer and warming centers in the winter.
When it comes time to fund these programs, we send their administrators to the government or charitable organizations to apply for grants that are well monitored and audited to within an inch of their lives. When they come to us with their hand out, asking for donations, we carefully count every penny to make sure we aren’t being cheated or that our precious resources are not going to feed someone who is unworthy of our largess.
Why? Because we have, one way or another, become convinced that, as we said in the beginning, “The resources with which we have come to this situation are insufficient for the task that has been set before us.”
And yet, scripture teaches us that on those occasions when we step out in faith and share our seemingly inadequate resources generously, they are somehow always more than enough. There are always leftovers — enough to feed yet another multitude.
If the people are going unfed it is not because we lack resources but because we lack faith. We are afraid to be generous because we don’t trust God to use what we give responsibly. We know that God is generous to a fault and expects us to do the same.
Jesus has given us a formula for success, however, a way to make our little enough and more than enough. It’s a formula that appears in the story and it has six easy steps:
- Make an honest assessment of what you need. (Food to feed a huge crowd.)
- Make an honest assessment of what you have. (Five loaves & two fishes.)
- Get organized. (He had the people sit down on the grass.)
- Give thanks.
- Give your assets away, generously. (He gave them the loaves and fish, all that they wanted.)
- Pick up the leftovers. There will always be leftovers. (Twelve baskets full.)
- Take the leftovers home and eat them in a feast on Sunday night.
And then, I think we can extrapolate from the story and add this one more step:
SECOND THOUGHTSChoices
by Katy Stenta
2 Samuel 11:1-15
“I know Donald Trump’s type,” Kamala Harris proclaims as she opens up her presidential race, talking about those who she has prosecuted before, naming Trump for who he is. We seem to be at a fulcrum of history in our election in the United States, where naming who people are and what they have done is really important.
When it looked like Biden might have to step down, I and many people I know, were afraid because we knew that, as a woman and a person of color — of an Asian and African American woman, the battle would be tough. The racism and misogyny will be, as my kids might phrase it, epic.
In the story of David and Bathsheba, Bathsheba is a named woman, who is remembered for her tragic circumstances. Dr. Wil Gafney says, “What most people seem to remember about Bathsheba is the worst day of her life, maybe the worst few days: the day David raped her, the day David killed her husband, the day she realized she would have to marry her rapist, the day the baby David raped into her died as his punishment for his sin against her husband and against God. That it was rape and not adultery as the victim blamers say.” She is remembered for her trauma, but at some point, she chose to live, to live and to be a mother to her children. “It seems to me she made up her mind to have the best life she could under the circumstances.” Bathsheba is not just remembered for this, because, as Dr. Gafney points out, she is the grandmother of Jesus.
Biden will be remembered not just as the man who was too frail to continue, but the man who stepped down for his country. He has changed the story with a choice. First choosing a woman vice president, and then by following through in supporting her and stepping down. How amazing our choices can be.
Now Harris is making choices to name Trump’s sins out loud, and to juxtapose them against the woman that she is. The naming of these differences are her strength. It is quite a Bathsheba move.
David was an ass, but, as one of Dr. Gafney’s students once remarked in her class, at least he was God’s ass. Thus, the Psalms are full of David’s repentance and listening for God. It is perhaps too much to hope of such behavior from Trump. However, we can hope that we can do as well. To admit when we fail, to admit that we too are imperfect, to identify who we are and who we aren’t, and to step into the presence of God remembering that our choices are important. God wants us to choose — and God will pick us up whenever we stumble and fall.
ILLUSTRATIONS
From team member Mary Austin:John 6:1-21
Letting Go of Perfection
When Jesus feeds the crowd, he isn’t worried about perfection — he’s aiming for sustenance, and for a deeper bond with God. Shaylyn Romney Garrett challenged herself to host people in her home, also seeking deeper connections. There were plenty of reasons not to have people in her home: The cleaning, the stress, the family budget, working full-time. Still, she say, “As part of a year-long personal journey to find ways of strengthening my own sense of community and connection, I challenged myself to host people in my home at least once a week. Four gatherings of friends or neighbors in my home in just 30 days.”
She says one big lesson was that “perfection is the enemy of connection,” adding, “When I first started hosting people, it would take me days to prepare. The floors had to be swept and mopped, the carpets vacuumed, and the toilets scrubbed. My unfinished projects had to be gathered up and hidden away, and every marker, crayon, and toy returned to its proper place. Social media’s culture of curation has conditioned us to believe that only our most polished face is socially acceptable…Once I let go of the need to put forward a perfected picture of domestic bliss, it finally felt possible to have friends in my home on a regular basis. And the freedom to be fully me — mess and all — was liberating. It was also an important part of laying the groundwork for true and meaningful connection. Our perfected selves may be magazine-worthy, but are often unapproachable, even forbidding.”
Jesus has no such worries, and invites us into a world of food and grace without worrying about what’s imperfect.
* * *
Ephesians 3:14-21
Strength
The letter to the Ephesians contains a beautiful prayer, with the writer saying, “I pray that, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit.” Strength grows through challenging experiences.
Church consultant Peter Steinke observes, “In the Biosphere in Arizona, a three-acre greenhouse in the desert, people noticed that the fruit was falling off the trees prematurely. What had happened? Inside this encapsulated environment, wind, a force that challenges the trees’ branches and strengthens them, is absent. Without wind, the branches do not gain sufficient strength to hold the fruit to the time of maturation.” (from Uproar: Calm Leadership in Anxious Times)
* * *
Ephesians 3:14-21
Connecting
The letter to the Ephesians sees a deep connection between people, based on our shared rootedness in God. Many days, that connection is difficult to feel.
Anne Lamott writes about the ways we find that connection, as individuals, and in wider ways.
“You’ll be at some horrible party you couldn’t get out of and everybody’s making small talk, and your entire being seizes up, but then suddenly you glimpse your person across the room, your partner or friend, your dad, a co-conspirator. There is a blip of eye contact, and it is a beautiful cellular moment of connection. That can happen on a communal level sometimes, as when sober alcoholics find some other sober people in their meeting rooms, even if they don’t understand the language being spoken. Or two families with troubled teens who make eye contact at a gathering of ebullient, successful kids, and exchange expressions of sympathy, of “make this stop.” Those are we moments we can’t even name because they’re so holy. People say pain shared is pain divided. In shared pain, the true self shows: Fragile, vulnerable, interdependent, and needy. And there’s something strong and wonderful about that.” (from Somehow Thoughts on Love)
* * *
Psalm 14
Who Is Wise?
The psalmist writes, “The Lord looks down from heaven on humankind / to see if there are any who are wise.”
In a world where wisdom seems to have gone missing, there are still wise people among us. Shane Parrish writes about an interview with gerontologist Karl Pillemer, author of 30 Lessons for Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans. Pillemer says, “I kept meeting older people — many of whom had lost loved ones, been through tremendous difficulties, and had serious health problems — but who nevertheless were happy, fulfilled, and deeply enjoying life.” The people who were interviewed had wisdom like: “Say things now to people you care about — whether it’s expressing gratitude, asking forgiveness, or getting information. Spend the maximum amount of time with your children. Savor daily pleasures instead of waiting for “big-ticket items” to make you happy. Work in a job you love. Choose your mate carefully; don’t just rush in.”
The biggest regret: “Worrying about things that never happened.” “Worrying wastes your life,” one respondent said. Pillemer asked one person for the source of her happiness. She thought about it and answered, “In my 89 years, I’ve learned that happiness is a choice — not a condition.”
There are still some who are wise — and we can be among them, even in a challenging season.
* * * * * *
From team member Chris Keating:2 Samuel 11:1-15
A rape by any other name
Too often, writes scholar Wil Gafney, the church has equivocated in naming David’s assault of Bathsheba as rape, a plight “uncomfortably similar” to others who must “prove to the police and general public that they were raped.”
As many as 75% of rape victims experience victim blaming, with responses ranging from “You were asking for it...” to “Surely you could have said no.” North Carolina politician Mark Robinson, who is the Republican nominee for governor, has an especially long history of making light of sexual assault. Reports indicate that Robinson has questioned the reliability of assault victims for more than a decade — including the victims of abusers like Bill Cosby, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, and Harvey Weinstein. In one post, Robinson described Harvey Weinstein as a “sacrificial lamb” who was being led to slaughter.
* * *
2 Samuel 11:1-15
Wrestling with the complicated legacies of powerful abusers
Despite committing both assault and murder, David’s legacy looms large within Israel’s history. His story is encased in a thickened shell of both theological and political privilege. Together with other powerful men throughout history, he occupies the position of being simultaneously notable and infamous. Most recently, an investigation by the Catholic church revealed extensive abuse allegations against the Abbe Pierre, an iconic church leader who sheltered Jews during World War II and founded the worldwide Emmaus solidarity community, which has worked for those oppressed by poverty. Other famous church leaders accused of sexual assault include Catholic theologian Jean Vanier, musician David Haas (composer of hymns such as “Come, Live In the Light/We Are Called,” and “You Are Mine”), and Mennonite theologian John Howard Yoder. (Certainly, the list of abusers includes many more lessor known figures.) Such widespread abuse is, as one publication called it, “beyond bad apples,” and forces the church to wrestle with protecting victims by naming despicable acts of violence perpetrated by those who have also made substantial, sometimes even brilliant, contributions.
* * *
2 Kings 4:42-44
Understanding abundance
This text names a particularly tricky problem for Elisha. He aspires to bring good things to the poor of the land, and wishes to make sure the poor are fed. Yet when the offering from the man of Baal-shalishah is presented, it feels as if the offering won’t be enough. The story prefigures some of what is to come in the gospel accounts but is also a standalone example of how the prophets of God trusted in God’s ability to provide.
We rarely trust in such provision today, and instead believe either we or our leaders lack what is needed. When President Joe Biden yielded to mounting pressures to suspend his campaign for reelection, opponents began questioning whether he had enough stamina to continue to lead. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson suggested that “if Joe Biden is not fit to run for President, he is not fit to serve as president,” and called upon Biden to resign. Biden’s historic decision to suspend his campaign was itself the result of constant questions about whether the impact of his age and health limited his ability to lead the nation.
Jonathan Westover writes that among the leaders he often coaches, some tend to approach challenges like budget constraints and limited resources from a paradigm of scarcity. “They tend to see it as a fixed pie, a zero-sum game.” As a result, Westover suggests they lead from positions of fear by chasing easy wins. “In contrast,” he writes, “occasionally I observe leaders or colleagues who seemingly reject the scarcity paradigm, replacing it with an abundance mindset. Despite the reality of limited resources that we all face, these individuals see challenges and obstacles as opportunities for learning and innovation. They adopt a growth mindset and constantly work to develop new skills, competencies and capabilities.”
* * *
Psalm 145:10-18, Ephesians 3:14-21
A kingdom of glory and love
A recent speech from Senator Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican, has been hailed as a call to embrace Christian nationalism. Hawley said the United States is a nation “defined by the dignity of the common man as given to us in the Christian religion.”
“I'm sure some will say now that I am calling America a Christian nation. And so I am. And some will say that I am advocating Christian nationalism. And so I do... my question is, is there any other kind worth having?” He continued, “the truth is, Christian nationalism is not a threat to American democracy.”
Yet, such nationalism seems to be at odds with scripture, including both this week’s psalm and Epistle readings. Psalm 145, while speaking to a theocratic nation, embodies a broader vision of God’s love and justice than is typically upheld by Christian nationalists — including a reminder of God’s graciousness toward the marginalized, weak, and struggling.
Ephesians, in addition, upholds the notion of God’s universal love that is at odds with the idea of American exceptionalism. Paul seeks to create a communion of love, strengthened by the gift of a cosmic Christ whose power is at work within the church, and not a particular nation.
* * * * * *
WORSHIPby George Reed
Call to Worship
One: God looks down to see if there are any who are wise.
All: We have all gone astray and no one does what is good.
One: The evildoers eat up God’s children like they are devouring bread.
All: They do not know nor do they call upon God.
One: O that deliverance would come from God’s dwelling place.
All: When justice and righteousness prevail, we will be glad.
OR
One: Come and receive what God has prepared for us.
All: We open our hearts and lives to God’s gifts.
One: God, who provides for all our needs, gives us the Holy Spirit.
All: With thanksgiving we receive the gift of God’s own self.
One: As with all God’s gift, this one is meant to be shared.
All: We will share all that God has graciously given us.
Hymns and Songs
This Is My Father’s World
UMH: 144
H82: 651
PH: 293
GTG: 370
AAHH: 149
NNBH: 41
CH: 59
LBW: 554
ELW: 824
W&P: 21
AMEC: 47
Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee
UMH: 89
H82: 376
PH: 464
GTG: 611
AAHH: 120
NNBH: 40
NCH: 4
CH: 2
LBW: 551
ELW: 836
W&P: 59
AMEC: 75
STLT: 29
For the Beauty of the Earth
UMH: 92
H82: 416
PH: 473
GTG: 14
NNBH: 8
NCH: 28
CH: 56
LBW: 561
ELW: 879
W&P: 40
AMEC: 578
STLT 21
For the Fruits of This Creation
UMH: 97
H82: 424
PH: 553
GTG: 36
NCH: 425
CH: 714
LBW: 563
ELW: 679
W&P: 723
Where Cross the Crowded Ways of Life
UMH: 427
H82: 609
PH: 408
GTG: 343
NCH: 543
CH: 665
LBW: 429
ELW: 719
W&P: 591
AMEC: 561
Jesu, Jesu
UMH: 432
H82: 602
PH: 367
GTG: 203
NCH: 498
CH: 600
ELW: 708
W&P: 273
Renew: 289
Cuando El Pobre (When the Poor Ones)
UMH: 434
PH: 407
GTG: 762
CH: 662
ELW: 725
W&P: 624
What Does the Lord Require
UMH: 441
H82: 605
PH: 405
CH: 659
W&P: 686
Take My Life, and Let It Be
UMH: 399
H82: 707
PH: 391
GTG: 697:
NNBH: 213
NCH: 448
CH: 609
LBW: 406
ELW: 583/685
W&P: 466
AMEC: 292
Renew: 150
A Charge to Keep I Have
UMH: 413
AAHH: 467/468
NNBH: 436
AMEC: 242
We Worship and Adore You
CCB: 6
Sing unto the Lord a New Song
CCB: 16
Renew: 99
Music Resources Key
UMH: United Methodist Hymnal
H82: The Hymnal 1982
PH: Presbyterian Hymnal
GTG: Glory to God, The Presbyterian Hymnal
AAHH: African American Heritage Hymnal
NNBH: The New National Baptist Hymnal
NCH: The New Century Hymnal
CH: Chalice Hymnal
LBW: Lutheran Book of Worship
ELW: Evangelical Lutheran Worship
W&P: Worship & Praise
AMEC: African Methodist Episcopal Church Hymnal
STLT: Singing the Living Tradition
CCB: Cokesbury Chorus Book
Renew: Renew! Songs & Hymns for Blended Worship
Prayer for the Day/Collect
O God who creates with lavish abundance:
Grant us the grace to trust in your bounty
as we share our gifts with others;
through Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.
OR
We praise you, O God, because you create with a lavish abundance. You fill all of creation with good things. Help us to have enough trust in you that we will share your bounty with others. Amen.
Prayer of Confession
One: Let us confess to God and before one another our sins and especially the ways we selfishly hoard God’s gifts.
All: We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received so much from your hands through this wonderful creation and yet we hoard it like it is just for us. We act like you did not create enough for everyone and we want to get our share. Forgive us in our selfish ways and open our hearts as you have opened yours. Amen.
One: God is generous and gracious and willingly forgives us and blesses us so that we can bless others.
Prayers of the People
Blessed are you, Creator of all that was, and is, and ever shall be. The rich bounty of your creation reflects your overflowing love and grace.
(The following paragraph may be used if a separate prayer of confession has not been used.)
We confess to you, O God, and before one another that we have sinned. We have received so much from your hands through this wonderful creation and yet we hoard it like it is just for us. We act like you did not create enough for everyone and we want to get our share. Forgive us our selfish ways and open our hearts as you have opened yours.
We give you thanks for all that you bless us with. You have filled the earth with good things that we delight in. We are blessed with an overabundance. We thank you for those who have generous to us when we have been in need. We thank you for people who work to make sure that all have a share in your bounty.
(Other thanksgivings may be offered.)
We pray for your children in need. We pray for those who are hungry and those who are starving. We pray for those who have no employment or whose employment does not provide for their needs. We pray for those who work in underpaid positions so that they can serve others.
(Other intercessions may be offered.)
Hear us as we pray for others: (Time for silent or spoken prayer.)
All these things we ask in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ who taught us to pray saying:
Our Father....Amen.
(Or if the Our Father is not used at this point in the service.)
All this we ask in the name of the Blessed and Holy Trinity. Amen.
* * * * * *
CHILDREN'S SERMONGod, Bless You
by Tom Willadsen
John 6:1-21
After the little ones have gathered up front, sneeze, or pretend to. Chances are someone will say, “Bless you.”
This is your starting point, ask the little ones if they know why people say, “Bless you.” or “God bless you.” after someone sneezes.
Christians have been saying “God bless you.” after someone sneezes for more than a thousand years. Maybe it’s because they believed that when someone sneezes their soul leaves their body and saying “God bless you.” protects the sneezer from having evil spirits rush into the body while the soul has left.
Does that sound crazy to you? I hope it does.
Did you know there’s another time we bless someone?
Jesus did it in the reading from the Bible. The story goes that there was a huge crowd around Jesus and they were hungry. There was nowhere near enough food to feed all the people and the disciples didn’t have enough money to buy food for all of them. There were five thousand people and all they had were five loaves of bread and two fish. It was a big problem for them, even though Jesus told them it was just a test.
The Bible says Jesus gave thanks for the bread. Whom did Jesus thank for the bread? You want them to answer God!
You know what Jesus really did? Jesus blessed God. Think about that—Jesus blessed God. He said a prayer that goes, “Blessed are you, O God, King of the Universe, you have brought forth bread from the earth.”
Next time you say grace before you eat, I hope you will remember that. God blesses us with all kinds of marvelous things. And one way we say “thank you” is that we bless God!
* * * * * * * * * * * * *
The Immediate Word, July 28, 2024 issue.
Copyright 2024 by CSS Publishing Company, Inc., Lima, Ohio.
All rights reserved. Subscribers to The Immediate Word service may print and use this material as it was intended in sermons and in worship and classroom settings only. No additional permission is required from the publisher for such use by subscribers only. Inquiries should be addressed to or to Permissions, CSS Publishing Company, Inc., 5450 N. Dixie Highway, Lima, Ohio 45807.
