Friday, September 28, 2012

Cleaning Up After the 5000


by Beth Beutler

Today I had my Bible open to Matthew 14, where Jesus feeds 5000 people, and a verse stuck out to me that applies to home management and organization.

Matthew 14:20 (NKJV) So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.

After Jesus did this miracle, the disciples (and perhaps other people) gathered up the leftovers after everyone had enough to eat.

They cleaned up after themselves.

I don't know what they did with the fragments, but it sure looks like that mountain wasn't left looking like 5000+ people had been there eating.

How about us? Sometimes it's easy to put our energy toward the beginning of a project of a meal or event, but clean up is less exciting. Yet it is an important part of stewardship.

I used to camp frequently and the "Good Sam" motto is to leave a campsite better than you found it. What if we did that wherever we find ourselves? What if each of us picked up one piece of litter at the park? What if we consolidated our dirty dishes for the wait staff at the restaurant? What if we taught our kids (as I saw one lady to) to take a paper towel and wipe around the sink in the church restroom after they wash their hands?

How much nicer would God's world look if we cleaned up after ourselves, and took an extra step to even help clean up after others sometimes too?


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