“ During those days another large crowd gathered. Since they had nothing to eat, Jesus called his disciples to him and said, ‘I have compassion for these people; they have already been with me three days and have nothing to eat. If I send them home hungry, they will collapse on the way, because some of them have come a long distance.’ His disciples answered, ‘But where in this remote place can anyone get enough bread to feed them?’ ‘ How many loaves do you have?’ Jesus asked. ‘Seven,’ they replied. He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. When he had taken the seven loaves and given thanks, he broke them and gave them to his disciples to distribute to the people, and they did so. They had a few small fish as well; he gave thanks for them also and told the disciples to distribute them. The people ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over.” (Mark 8:1-8)

In Mark 8:1–8 Jesus fed a large multitude for a second time. The people were so hungry for his teaching that they had remained with him for three days. Having nothing to eat, Jesus was filled with compassion for their return home. Consulting with his disciples, Jesus discovered that they had seven loaves of bread. Despite the disciples’ objections, it was enough—the perfect number in fact. After feeding 4000 people, the disciples also collected seven baskets of leftovers. Jesus’ perfect sufficiency stands in stark contrast to the disciples’ doubt and inability to come up with a solution based on standard logic. Jesus’ leadership was driven by compassion. His abundance mentality created much out of little, not something out of nothing. The capacity to think in terms of what could happen rather than what cannot happen is a great starting point for serving leaders. Consider your resources and step out in faith.

KEY QUESTIONS: When has logic ever gotten in the way of a compassionate response? Has logic ever prevented me from pursuing creative solutions? Am I driven by an abundance or scarcity mentality? Do I tend to think more in terms of what cannot happen than what can happen? How might I increase in faith?