Leftover Love

Seeing all things as gifts from God’s bounty

02/10/2018

Mark 8:1-10 In those days when there again was a great crowd without anything to eat, Jesus summoned the disciples and said, “My heart is moved with pity for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them away hungry to their homes, they will collapse on the way, and some of them have come a great distance.” His disciples answered him, “Where can anyone get enough bread to satisfy them here in this deserted place?” Still he asked them, “How many loaves do you have?” They replied, “Seven.” He ordered the crowd to sit down on the ground. Then, taking the seven loaves he gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to his disciples to distribute, and they distributed them to the crowd. They also had a few fish. He said the blessing over them and ordered them distributed also. They ate and were satisfied. They picked up the fragments left over–seven baskets. There were about four thousand people.

I love leftovers. Do you? Let me tell you why I love leftovers. First of all, some food tastes better the second or third day you eat it, especially if it is my dad’s Indian chicken curry. The spies have had more time to marinate the chicken. Secondly, when I enjoy a meal of leftovers that means I did not have to go out to eat and therefore the church did not have to reimburse me for a meal expense. The pastor eating leftovers means the parishioners are saving money! And the third reason is to avoid wasting food. The next time you go out to eat at a restaurant, glance at the other tables and pay attention to the large portions of food that are ordered, and sadly, the equally large amounts that are thrown away. Many times those leftovers could have made a second meal, and sometimes it would have tasted better than the first meal.

In other words, to love leftovers, we have to change our attitude and approach to food altogether, and start seeing leftovers as a gift rather than as garbage. The moral and ethical roots of this change plunge deep into our relationship with God, who has given us everything, even our food as a gift to be cherished. Remember how the prayer called “Grace Before Meals” goes? We pray: “Bless us, O Lord, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive from thy bounty, through Christ our Lord. Amen.” If the meal you are about to devour is indeed a gift of God – from the bounty of his heavenly table – then take what you need, and guard the leftovers as a gift to be enjoyed later. When we love leftovers, we are showing love for God.

Jesus teaches his disciples to discern how to approach food, too, and really wants them to learn how to love leftovers. Our Lord’s tender heart is moved deeply when he sees the crowd hungry and asks his disciples what should be done. They are at a loss because they only have seven loaves of bread, hardly enough for each person to eat a crumb. But that is more than enough for Jesus. Our Lord multiplies those seven loaves – which may have been leftovers from a previous meal – and not only feeds four thousand people, but has seven baskets of loaves leftover. I am sure they did not throw those leftovers away like garbage, but rather they treated them as a great gift, indeed, they had received them straight “from God’s bounty through Christ our Lord.” When we love leftovers, we show love for the Lord.

Let me give you a few other examples of loving leftovers, and not just leftover food. A local construction company sends emails that often have attachments. At the bottom of the email, however, it says: “Please consider the environment before printing this email.” What a simple but healthy reminder not to create leftovers that we later treat like garbage rather than as a gift. The “Baby Bottle Campaign” for Heart to Heart Pregnancy Center is another good example of treating our leftover change with more respect and a touch of reverence. That leftover change can save a life and truly become a gift of God. A friend of mine has the habit of giving something away whenever he gets something new. If he buys a new shirt, he gives an old shirt away; if he gets a new book, he gives an old book away. That is why I hang out with him, so I do not have to buy shirts or books. And my parishioners do not have to reimburse me.

When we love leftovers of whatever shape or size, we do more than protect the environment. We begin to see all of creation as a gift of God, and we treat that gift with the respect and reverence it deserves. Our love of leftovers shows our love for God.

Praised be Jesus Christ!