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PRAYER FOR THE WEEK
Jesus, help me to stop saying, "I can't do it," and ask for encouragement instead! Amen.

Jesus healed the sick and taught a crowd of 5,000 people about God. When it got late, the Apostles wanted them to go home and eat, but Jesus said, "Feed them yourself." "We only have five loaves of bread and two fish!" the Apostles argued. So Jesus blessed the food and passed it around - and suddenly there was enough for everyone!

How often have you said the words, "I can't do it"? You might be hanging from the monkey bars, struggling to swim across the deep end of the pool or trying to finish a book you're supposed to read this summer - but whatever you're doing seems impossible.

Often, "I can't do it," really means, "I'm scared," "I'm tired," "I'm angry" or "I just don't want to do it." That was the case in this week's Gospel (Matthew 14:13-21)!

It's easy to use, "I can't do it," as an excuse for not finishing something. A book seems too long and you don't understand half the words - and you'd rather be outside - so you say you can't finish it. You're halfway across the pool and you're tired, and you stop so you can float with an inflatable pool toy instead of swimming.

When Jesus' friends said they couldn't possibly feed a crowd of 5,000 people, Jesus knew they could. If they were into the idea, they could urge people to share food and pray to God for help. There were lots of options; the Apostles just didn't much care. They were tired and wished everyone would just go home already.

Often, when you say, "I can't do it," a friend or an adult encourages you to keep trying - and often, you find out you're a better reader or swimmer than you thought. In the Gospel story, Jesus proved that, with faith and encouragement, anything is possible - from crossing the monkey bars alone to feeding 5,000 people![[In-content Ad]]

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