Live Lent – Week 2 – Bread

This week we are thinking about bread. Something that sustains and nourishes us, bread can be a staple food in our diets, something that we often take for granted. But what is it that we need for life and how might we nourish and feed others?

Read: John 6:35–58

Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty’.

Alongside the seven ‘signs’ in John’s Gospel are seven sayings of Jesus which he begins with the words ‘I am…’. These sayings are an invitation to see Jesus for what and who he truly is. As the ‘Bread of Life’, Jesus invites us to come to him and be fed, to be nourished and refreshed. He calls us to feed and nurture others.

Even if we feel the gifts we have are only crumbs, they can, in his hands, become the means of bringing life to others.

Pause

What are the ‘crumbs’ in your life that seem inadequate for you and for those who come to you for help? Faith, love, hope? Time, energy, patience?

Pray

Bread of Life,
Sustain and bless all those who hunger and thirst.
Give us an appetite to see your Kingdom come here and now.
Out of your generosity, we find ourselves satisfied.
Out of our abundance, may we feed others.
Amen.

Challenge

Make time this week to feed someone else with food, love or kindness. Offer what you have, even if it feels inadequate, with thanks and generosity.