The Gift Exchange: Receiving, Trusting, Multiplying

Jesus is just saying to you today, bring your portion to him. Just just offer it. See what he can do out of it. And really, it's the opposite of being passive. This is this is discipleship one zero one. This is following Jesus one zero one to just say, oh, I don't have much, but I am gonna give it to you. And what an exchange. We've been talking about that this morning. What an exchange that that I just give all of who I am, which most days I'm kind of gross gutted about. I give all that I am and then I receive all of who he is, [00:33:58] (38 seconds)  #bringYourPortion

And Jesus does four things with it. He takes it, he blesses it, he breaks it, and he gives it to feed thousands and thousands of people. So he he takes the portion, he breaks it up, he blesses it, and then uses even that portion to do immeasurably more than all we could ever ask or imagine because he is he is truly lord. [00:31:07] (32 seconds)  #JesusMultiplies

But he said the lord always always breaks what he takes and blesses it and uses it, and we usually stop at blessing. But, usually, the breaking happens first. Right? Usually, the breaking happens first and then the blessing comes and we're like, but I won't like I don't like my portion as much as I there's a lot of stuff on my plate I don't really like. [00:32:31] (19 seconds)  #BrokenBeforeBlessed

And and so this the text, I think, is showing us to move from this idea of of, from gain, like, more than enough to my portion or my lot, from chasing surplus to receiving what's given. There's that nothing to be gained, but there is something to be received and enjoyed and that's a gift. So so it's not I'm not clawing forward and chasing forward and trying to grab this vaporous life. I'm actually just receiving from god who he is and and what he offers and then finding enjoyment because he doesn't want you to be a sourpuss. He doesn't want you to just be a grump. He actually wants you to enjoy life. [00:12:50] (45 seconds)  #ReceiveDontChase

This is my thing. I worked for it. I earned it. Like, you don't sound like you've received anything. You've just earned everything. You know the difference. Right? I earned this. I made this. I did this. This is my these are my friends. This is my situation. These are my and he's like, no. You were given it. And then the exchange in in it from gift to giver is gratitude. And so we we walk and we say, thank you for that. So I receive it and I'm gonna I'm gonna offer that back to you to do what you want to do with it. And that offering back is a real difficult thing. [00:34:44] (38 seconds)  #OfferItBack

There's a sense in which all the things we've been given, god god wants you to enjoy them. He's the giver of all good gifts. He's the father of lights and he delights in his children and he wants to give you good gifts. And so we get we receive them, but we receive them in a conversation of gratitude with the father. [00:07:43] (20 seconds)  #GiftsHaveGivers

anyway, we pray to the one who is able to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine, And this is through Jesus Christ, our lord. And so he's able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine that you're looking at your plate going, that's I don't like this portion that I've got. But he's able to immeasurably more. So who's in whose hands is your plate better off? I mean, it's gonna it's gonna have to be in his hands. Right? [00:29:31] (27 seconds)  #BringSmallBringFaith

He takes people's ordinary portion and leads them into more than they expected. So if we think back to this one dinner story, this little boy brings five loaves and two fish to Jesus in the midst of a crowd who is just struggling. They're like, well, we either gotta leave, but I don't wanna leave because Jesus is preaching, and he's teaching, and he has the words of life. I don't wanna go anywhere, and yet but but we need to eat. And so the disciples were really curious, like, what are we gonna do about this problem? [00:30:07] (33 seconds)  #BeyondVanityLife