9. The Boy with His Lunch

(John 6: 1-14)

Once there was a good boy who had a very kind-hearted mother. Early one morning he said, “Mother, I’d like to go fishing to-day.” “Yes,” said the mother, “you’ve been a good boy; take your fishing-tackle, and here’s a nice lunch for you.” She put him up five little cakes, such as he liked, in a basket. He went down to the lake and fished all the morning and way into the afternoon, and caught only two little fish, which he held over a fire that he made, until the fish were cooked brown and looked so good to eat. He was just about to eat them with his cakes, when he looked up and saw a great crowd of people a little distance away whom he had not noticed before. He wondered who they could be. So quickly putting his five little cakes and two fishes into the basket, he took it up, ran as fast as he could, and pressed his way to the front, where he saw a great and good man talking to the people so earnestly that they did not notice the boy. Soon he was listening as earnestly as any of them. When the great and good man had talked a long time and no one seemed tired, one of the men said: “I think you had better send the people home to get something to eat. If they stay much longer they will get so hungry they will faint by the way.” The good man said, “You give them something to eat!” The man laughed and said: “Why, if we bought two hundred dollars’ worth of bread and gave each person a little, there would not be enough to go around.” When the boy heard that, he said to a man he knew, “He can have my lunch if he wants.” The man said: “There’s a little lad here with five little cakes and two little fishes, and he says you can have his lunch, if you want!” “Yes,” said the good man, “let him bring it to me.” So that good boy came right up in front of the great and good man and gave him his lunch. The good man asked God to bless it. Then he asked his friends to seat the boys and girls on the green grass in rows of fifty, and the women in rows of fifty, and the men in rows of a hundred. When they were all seated, the good man took up one of the little cakes and broke off a piece, and another and another and another; but the cake did not become smaller. He kept breaking it until there was a great deal of bread. Then he took up one of the little fishes and broke off a piece, then another and another and another; but the fish did not become smaller. He kept breaking the fish until there was plenty. Then his friends passed the cakes and fish around to the boys and girls. It was the sweetest bread and fish they had ever tasted. The boy who gave up his lunch had all he could eat, so did all the women and all the men. When they had eaten all they wished, there were twelve baskets full left over. And it all came about because that good boy was willing to share his lunch with the great and good man.