Countering Fear

“Where can we buy enough food for them to eat?”

Fear is a powerful and dangerous motivator, so strong at times it can overwhelm our good judgment and cause us to harm ourselves and others. When a mother can't afford to feed a child, she might do almost anything to find food. Anyone who has lived among the very poor knows this. Women everywhere have sold themselves to support their children, and fathers have stolen money and goods for the same purpose.

We don't know how fearful the disciples were when Jesus told them to feed the hungry themselves, but they immediately resist his command to feed those who are following him. “Two hundred days’ wages worth of food would not be enough for each of them to have a little.” Afraid, perhaps, that they would not have enough for themselves, the Lord will have none of it. Jesus insists that there is always enough if we take not what we want to feel comfortable, but what we need to stay alive and healthy. Sharing the goods of the earth is a foundational Gospel principle.

Today, think and pray about what it feels like to be hungry.

Have you ever fed anyone simply because they were hungry?