We just learned that the yard-waste service in our city is being discontinued. Reason: not enough workers. There is enough money. There are enough trucks. There are more than enough jobless people. Yet a shortage of workers. What is going on?
Even in a society with material abundance and more money than can be counted, we are experiencing a new kind of shortage. Many people do not have the motivation to work.
When Jesus came to earth, he entered a culture of shortages. The greatest shortage was one of hope. No doubt there was material poverty and maybe a worker crisis, but the chosen people of God were under to rule of an oppressive foreign power and their lamps of hope were going out.
Though Jesus was a poor man from Nazareth, wherever he went shortages gave way to abundance. Where there was a shortage of health, Jesus healed people. Where there was a shortage of spiritual power, he drove out demons. And when he preached the gospel to the poor, hope arose inside the people.
Today we have the familiar story of what Jesus did when there was a food shortage (Mark 6:34-44).
“When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd; and he began to teach them many things.”
The people were starving for God and so, Jesus taught them.
At the end of the day the disciples, realizing there was no food, urged Jesus to send the people home.
“Give them some food yourselves.” But they said to him, “Are we to buy two hundred days’ wages worth of food and give it to them to eat?”
Jesus, as we know, took charge of the situation, and began to turn their shortage into abundance.
“So, he gave orders to have them sit down in groups on the green grass. The people took their places on the green grass.”
Doesn’t this make us think of Psalm 23 in which the shepherd makes his sheep lie down on green grass? Jesus, the Shepherd was organizing the sheep so he could feed them.
“Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people…They all ate and were satisfied. And they picked up twelve wicker baskets full of fragments…”
From a mere five loaves of bread, Jesus was able to provide so much food that the people were satisfied, and had twelve baskets left over!
When Jesus is in charge, abundance follows. Without Jesus there always a shortage.
Our own society has closed itself off to Jesus and is now suffering the consequences. Even with an abundance of money, food, and technology, there is still something missing in our society. What is it? Mother Teresa answered this question when she was visiting the United States. She said that this country is the poorest in the world because there is an absence of love. And who is the source of love? St. John tells us (1 John 4:7-10).
“Whoever is without love does not know God, for God is love…and sent his Son as expiation for our sins.”
God is love. He made his love available to the world through Jesus. Those who have invited Jesus into their hearts begin to experience an abundance of God’s love. When this love overflows into the world, other shortages will soon be taken care of.
“I am the living bread from heaven…” (John 6:51).
