“Gather up the broken pieces which remain over, that nothing be lost.”
— John 6:12, ASV

Why did the Lord tell the disciples, after feeding the multitude by multiplying the loaves and fishes (John 6:9), to pick up the broken pieces? The disciples might have said they didn’t need the broken pieces, since He could just perform the same miracle and make fresh bread again whenever they were hungry.

Jesus, however, would not allow anything to go to waste. Moreover, it was the Father who had provided the meal for the 5,000 in response to the Lord’s prayer, and Jesus showed His appreciation of that by how He cared for what was left over of what the Father had given.

We should be the same in relation to what the Lord gives us. This is especially the case when the Lord gives us light in His word, or through His dealings with us. We should not simply let this light pass away and then expect Him to give us more in the future! Rather, we need to “gather up the broken pieces,” so to speak, by keeping a record of what the Lord has given us.

To be very specific, it is important to write down the light we have received in a spiritual journal, or in our note-taking Bible. Then we can come back to that light again and again in the future, and it may also come back to us.

The psalmist said:

Once God has spoken;
Twice have I heard.
— Psalm 62:11

How good it is if we, like the psalmist, can receive the same speaking from the Lord over and over again, with a fresh appreciation each time for the light He gave us before! I have to say, this practice has been an enormous help to me spiritually; so many times a note that I took long ago has given the Lord a way to shine on me again, bringing back His speaking to me on that point in a fresh way.

And if we have this practice of caring for and honoring what the Lord gives us in a proper way, so that it becomes a healthy store within us, it will no doubt open the way for Him to give us even more in the future. As the Lord Himself said,

“To everyone who has, more shall be given.”
— Matthew 25:29, Luke 19:26

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— 9 November 2022 —