Jacob wrestles with God (or an angel sent from God.) The con man has been conned himself. He once fooled his brother and father into giving him the birthright. He himself has been fooled by his uncle who has made him marry two daughters. One day his sons will fool him again when they sell Joseph into slavery. But this night Jacob is alone and in an unexpected place.

         Jacob is alone because he has sent his family and servants and all his possessions across the river to meet his brother. Jacob fears that his brother may still be angry, so he is waiting on this side of the river to put off the confrontation as long as possible. Jacob wrestles with God. For what was he wrestling? Jacob is being forced to confront how he has gotten to this place. He must face how he has lived his faith in God. Perhaps he is facing the difference between his profession of faith and his practice of working the best deal in life, no matter the consequences. Maybe this is a lesson to us. Do we live by faith in God or do we trust in our own ability to work the system?

         In contrast (and not necessarily connected), Jesus lives a life of faithful obedience to God. Herod has killed John the Baptist. Jesus is tired and he is seeking a place of quiet and rest. The crowd follows him to a deserted place and he teaches and heals until late in the day. He has compassion. The disciples urge Jesus to send them away to find food to eat. Jesus tells the disciples to give them something to eat.

         The disciples don’t see how this is possible. They only have five loaves and two fish. There is not enough. Jesus shows them that it is more than enough.

         Jesus doesn’t directly explain what happens or why. We are left to wonder and compare it to other things we know. The actions of Jesus are like the Eucharist. He takes the bread and blesses it. He breaks the bread and gives it to the disciples to distribute. The crowd marvels at the miracle, comparing it to other miraculous feedings. Is this like the manna in the wilderness? Is this like Elijah feeding the widow during the drought?

         The mechanism is not shared. Was food magically created out of thin air? Were people moved to generosity so that they opened their packs and shared their food with their neighbors? Is this a symbol of God’s provision and generosity? Why not all of these things?

         We are in our own tough spot. Like Jacob, it is difficult to believe in far away promises when we have very pressing present challenges. We’d rather work the angles than trust and wait. Like Jesus and the disciples, we are tired and overworked. We need a rest. We don’t see how we can meet the needs around us with our few resources.

         We can choose to focus on what is wrong and what we lack. We can list building and budget problems and we can complain about how bad it all is. Or we can live lives of faith and of hope.

         What do we believe? We believe in God’s unending love for us. We believe in God’s ability to provide all that we need. We believe we are called to join in God’s work of transforming the world. Maybe God can transform our small offerings and make them do things we have never imagined. Maybe our acts of generosity will move others to join us and we will all have more than we need. Maybe God will give us a miracle if we just get out of the way.

         This morning we offer a feast. It is more than a symbol. We are fed, even though we have little to offer. This morsel of bread and sip of wine makes us children of God and brothers and sisters of Jesus. We become good news to the hungry. We become messengers of a new world with new rules and new hope.

         Because Jesus has transformed whatever small thing we offer, we can turn from fear and live lives of faith. We no longer have to live as scheming fools who try and work the best angle in life. Instead, we can become faithful fools who can give everything away, knowing that we are as wealthy as we ever need to be.