More Scarcity Thoughts

This coming Sunday I am using the story of manna in the wilderness and the feeding of the 5000 as the scripture readings.

In both stories people are convinced that there is nothing to eat. And in both stories it turns out that there is enough and more.

I am convinced that whatever else they might be these are stewardship stories. It has been suggested (some would say proved) that the manna and the quail were both natural phenomena in the desert. The people just needed to look and see what they had available. A suggested interpretation of the feeding of the multitudes is that one somebody started to share then everybody else pulled out what they had been carrying with them -- sort of an early potluck if you will.

I think that we fall into the category of the Israelites in the desert. We don't see what we expect we should have so we murmur against the leadership. But what is around us waiting to be used? I find this to be true in most church congregations but also in society at large. Scarcity tells us that when a major employer is about to close there needs to be fighting and doom talk and moaning about our sorry lot in life. I wonder what sap deposits are lying around Atikokan just waiting to be utilized.

And behold "Some gathered more and some gathered less, according to their needs, and none was left over".

May it be so.