This month we conclude our youth group series Faith in an Anxious World by Fuller Youth Institute. As a youth group, we went on an expanded journey studying and reflecting upon New Testament stories where Jesus enters into anxious situations with his disciples. This month we end our series by focusing on a familiar story in the Gospel of Mark. The collection of passages that we will focus on for our concluding lesson is commonly referred to as, “Jesus feeds the 5,000”. I’m sure you know the story well. When we dive into this set of scriptures, it becomes clear that this is not just a story about Jesus feeding the masses on his own, but instead calling on his flawed and tired disciples to help.

For being considered the happiest place on earth, nowhere in my life have I seen a greater concentration of exhausted parents and crying cranky children than at Disney World. Perhaps, that is how these early disciples felt in the story, like exhausted parents at Disney World.

“When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, ‘This is a deserted place, and the hour is now very late; send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country and villages and buy something for themselves to eat. But he answered them, ‘You give them something to eat”’. (Mark 6:35-37).

Although these parents at Disney World are tired, they push through their own exhaustion to care for their children because that is what parents do. They balance an overpriced stuffed Mickey and a cold half-eaten churro while making their way through the crowds of Main Street all in hopes of getting a decent view of the nighttime show. This is followed by long lines for the packed, standing-room-only, bus ride back to the hotel as they prepare to do this all again the next day because the parents purchased park hopper tickets.

Even as tired and flawed disciples, Jesus still seeks out our help and calls us to serve our broken word. May we be sustained by the Holy Spirit and renewed by the gift of the sabbath, all while giving God thanks that we are called to such extraordinary work. Praise be to God.