Overcoming Our Shortcomings

This week's reading was focused on Jesus' miracle of feeding a multitude twice with very little food. On both occasions, the people had been following Him and listened to His preaching long enough that evening came and the disciples were concerned that there was not enough food to feed all those people. The Savior, knowing the circumstances and the needs of the people, asked that all the food be brought to Him. What little food was brought was enough to feed everyone and still have leftovers. Here is a table that summarizes both stories quiet nicely:

	Matthew 14:14-21	Matthew 15:32-38
How many people were present?	5,000 men (not counting women or children)	4,000 men (not counting women or children)
What did they need?	Food	Food
What were they able to offer in an effort to meet that need?	Five loaves and two fish	Seven loaves and “a few little fishes”
What words or phrases describe the Savior’s feeling toward the multitudes in their time of need?	Compassion, “give them to eat”	“I have compassion on the multitude…[because they] have nothing to eat”
What words or phrases describe what the Savior was able to provide for the multitudes?	The multitude ate enough that they were filled. The Savior gave them even more of what they wanted.	The multitude ate enough that they were filled. The Savior gave them even more of what they wanted.

In a very short period of time the Savior fed over 7,000 with no more than 12 loaves of bread and some fish. What I like about this passage is that Jesus wanted the people to follow Him and receive the gospel, but He was also conscientious of their physical needs and He provided for them what they needed, just as He does for us today. I know that the Lord is watching over us and protecting us, and as we put our trust in Him, we will always have those things that we need and that He knows we need.

Another note I wanted to make is that when we dig through this story a little deeper, we can learn a very important concept of the gospel. The Lord expects us to do hard things, but He also promised that we would never be left alone when follow Him. Even more, He also knows that we have shortcomings and are unable to do everything that He asks of us. Because of His love for us, He is always going to make up the difference to ensure that our best effort is what He is going to accept and bless us for. Just as with the multitudes in the stories above, the people gave Him all that they had to eat and Jesus made up the difference by multiplying what little they had and they were all full! He didn't just give them enough to simply satisfy their immediate need. He gave them even more than they needed, and the same is done for us as we do our best to follow his commandments and do what is right.