“Please Sit Down” John 6: 1-15
Introduction: There is a story about a man in
Have you ever felt
absolutely stressed out? Have you ever
felt like standing up and scream … about your work responsibilities,
perhaps? Or your financial
responsibilities? Or your family responsibilities? It has been estimated that 90 percent of all
doctor’s visits can be attributed, directly or indirectly, to stress, to the
feeling of being overwhelmed. When you stop and think about the stress we carry
due to the tough economic times we are facing in our country can be troubling.
Scripture: What do you do when you feel overwhelmed? Let me suggest a simple formula that comes
from our scripture lesson from the Gospel of John. This is a lesson we are all familiar
with. Jesus is on a mountainside with
His disciples. When Jesus looks up He
sees a great crowd coming toward Him. He
says to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread for these people to eat?” Here is a situation when any normal
person would be overwhelmed. It is
almost time for dinner and suddenly they discover that they have 5,000 men not
counting the women and the children.
Poor old Philip, he has no idea how they will feed this crowd. He says to Jesus, “Eight months’ wages wouldn’t
buy enough bread for each one to have a bite!” Things look pretty bad. There is no way they can feed all these
people. Then Andrew speaks up. “Here
is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will
they go among so many?” Then
Jesus turns and says, “Have the people sit down.” And
that’s what they did. Jesus then took
the loaves, gave thanks, and gave to those who were seated as much as they
wanted. He did the same with the
fish. When they all had enough to eat,
Jesus said to His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” That’s the story. But, how do you deal with overwhelming
situations? Let me suggest to you some
easy steps:
1. Sit Down: First of all … sit down. I can just see Philip frantically running
around crying out, “What shall we do? What shall we do?”
Jesus knew that panic never solved any problem. “Have the people sit down.”
A lecturer on stress
management raised a glass of water and asked his audience, “How heavy is this glass of
water?” Various
answers were called out. Then he
replied, “The weight really doesn’t matter. What matters is how long you try to
hold it. If I hold it for a minute,
that’s not a problem,” he said, “If I hold it for an hour, I’ll
have an ache in my right arm. If I hold
it for a day, you’ll have to call an ambulance.
In each case, it’s the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the
heavier it becomes.”
“And that’s the way it is
with stress,” he said. “If
we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes
increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on. You have to put it down for a while and rest
before holding it again. When we are
refreshed, we can carry on with the burden.
So, before you return home tonight,” he continued, “put the burden of work down. Don’t carry it home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you are carrying now, let
them down for a moment if you can.
Relax; pick them up later after you’ve rested. Life is short … Enjoy It!”
That may be the great thing
about worship. It’s a time when we can
sit still and reflect, and listen to God’s voice. Jesus knew it was important to settle the
crowd down. And so he said to His
disciples,
“Have them sit down.”
You see, the problem with
feeling overwhelmed is that we see our problems coming at us from every
direction, and so it keeps us from solving the problem in front of us. No wonder Jesus said on another occasion, “Do
not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of it’s own.”
“Have the people sit down.” That’s
where we begin. Sit down. Calm down. Focus on what’s immediately before
you.
2. God Has A Plan: Here is the second step: acknowledge that
God has a plan. I like the way the
church sign said it, “If your knees are knocking, kneel on them.”
John says that Jesus asked
Philip how they were going to feed all these people to test him, for Jesus
already had in mind what He was going to do.
God has a plan. Do you really
believe God is unaware of your need? Do
you believe that God has the ability to meet your needs? Then relax.
God will provide. There’s power
in trusting God. The same God who
multiplied the fish and the loaves that day long ago can give you the resources
you need to meet your obligations.
Sometimes we have to go
through some painful situations before we discern God’s hand in our life. We often see God’s hand only in the rear view
mirror. But God is always there. God is always available. God’s will is for our best good.
3. Make A Beginning: Here is the third step: make a
beginning. Andrew came forward to say
there was a boy present with 5 small barley loaves and 2 fish. It wasn’t much, but it was a beginning. That would give them something to start with.
What are the resources that
you have today to make your situation better?
Take an inventory. Get started
with what you have right now. There are
people who worry so much about a problem that they never really confront
it. Today, we are facing some very tough
economic times in our country. Are you
worried about your finances? Have you gotten around to making a budget? There are many people today who are
discovering they can live better on less.
Oh, I know this is easier said than done, but great things come from
small beginnings. As someone has said, “Winning
begins with beginning.”
An old fable tells of a
young bear cub that was puzzled as to how to walk. He asked an old she-bear, “Shall
I move my right paw first or my left, or my two front paws together, or the
hind ones, or all four at once or how?” In reply the old she-bear growled and
said, “Leave off thinking and walk!”
Sometimes that is what God
says to us. Quit analyzing the problem
to death and get on with it! Acknowledge
that God has a plan. Make a beginning.
4. Leftovers: The last thing I want to share with you
is gather up the leftovers for the next time.
You see, leftovers are important.
Jesus instructed His disciples, “Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.” Leftovers are important. Each experience in life should make us a
better person. That happens when we
gather up the leftovers.
On April 10, 1963, the
nuclear submarine “Thresher” went too deep into the ocean and was crushed by
the surrounding water. The sub broke
into such tiny bits that almost nothing could be identified. And yet in those
same deep waters where that steel submarine was crushed, little fish swim
without a care in the world. You see,
God gave them what they need to swim in deep places.
Conclusion: God will give us what we need when we swim in deep
places. What do we do when we are
overwhelmed? Learn from this beautiful
story of Jesus feeding the five thousand.
Sit down. Acknowledge that God
has a plan. Make a beginning. After you come through the experience, pick
up the leftovers. Use the experience to
prepare yourself for the next time you are tested.
You are not alone … God is
with you. God loves you and God will
never leave you along. This morning, I
urge you to place your trust
In almighty God.