And They Praised God

After Jesus had left that place, he passed along the Sea of Galilee, and he went up the mountain, where he sat down. Great crowds came to him, bringing with them the lame, the maimed, the blind, the mute, and many others. They put them at his feet, and he cured them, so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.
Then Jesus called his disciples to him and said, “I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way.” The disciples said to him, “Where are we to get enough bread in the desert to feed so great a crowd?” Jesus asked them, “How many loaves have you?” They said, “Seven, and a few small fish.” Then ordering the crowd to sit down on the ground, he took the seven loaves and the fish; and after giving thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds. And all of them ate and were filled; and they took up the broken pieces left over, seven baskets full. Those who had eaten were four thousand men, besides women and children. After sending away the crowds, he got into the boat and went to the region of Magadan. Matthew 15:29-39 

There are days when it might seem hard to give thanks or to praise God. Today is not one of those days.Today I get to see our grandchildren and I am always grateful and thankful for them. And when I see the face of my daughters I cannot help but praise God. I was told, after surgery as a young teen, I may never have children. And yet God blessed us with such incredible, miraculous gifts. There have been days when it was impossible for me to walk, so every day I can walk is an opportunity to praise God. We can take for granted the miracles in our loves but I would rather give thanks to the living God for the many miracles and blessings I have been given.

Jesus is followed up the mountain by crowds of needy and sick people. They were made well by the love of God and then they were fed to overflowing. Jesus didn't stop at the physical miracles of healing, all though it would have been enough for those who were healed. He also fed them, so that they could know the power of God in their lives, caring for the big troubles and the small ones too.
We are invited by God to continue to lift our troubles before God, since the living God desires to heal us and feed us as well. We are not left alone healed and hungry but rested and fed as well.

Today I ask God to help me lay all these needs before Jesus. May we like the crowds on the mountain, rush to follow him and tell him what we need. May we also accept the rest and fullness offered today.