Morning Devotional 070725 From the Least to the Greatest, All Are Important

Liz’s Morning Devotional: Scripture selected from Upper Room

July 7, 2025

John 6:8-14

8 One of his disciples, Andrew, Simon Peter’s brother, said, 9 “A youth here has five barley loaves and two fish. But what good is that for a crowd like this?” 10 Jesus said, “Have the people sit down.” There was plenty of grass there. They sat down, about five thousand of them. 11 Then Jesus took the bread. When he had given thanks, he distributed it to those who were sitting there. He did the same with the fish, each getting as much as they wanted. 12 When they had plenty to eat, he said to his disciples, “Gather up the leftover pieces, so that nothing will be wasted.” 13 So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets with the pieces of the five barley loaves that had been left over by those who had eaten. 14 When the people saw that he had done a miraculous sign, they said, “This is truly the prophet who is coming into the world.”

Good Morning! Give thanks to God for your gifts!

The story of the fishes and loaves reminds me that God can take something small and generate great blessings. One of the greatest blessings of being a part of a connectional church is that our small offerings to groups like UMCOR are combined with those of thousands of other churches to make a huge impact. 

God calls us to be part of the community of believers. Our blessings may seem small and insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but each small blessing can be faithfully combined with others so that the needs of many can be met. 

We must be careful not to think that what we have doesn’t matter. Imagine we are cooking a stew in a huge pot. Some bring a massive amount of liquid while others bring quantities of meat and vegetables. Our contribution is a pinch of seasoning. We wonder if anyone would notice if we weren’t there to add our part. 

Without the pinch of seasoning, the soup would lack flavor, and few would come to partake of it. We must never think that the gifts God gave us are unimportant. God created each part so that together we make each other whole. 

Giving Lord, you bless us abundantly! Sometimes we think we have little to offer, but you can take even our meager offerings and accomplish great things. Thank you. We love you, Lord! In Jesus’ name, we pray. Amen

Thought for the day: God makes all gifts sufficient!

 Share your God-given gifts abundantly. Pastor Liz