The Arizona Republic reported that the "Philadelphia Foundation will hand out its "philanthropist of the year" award to a 7-year-old who has squeezed more benevolence into her short life than most adults 10 times her age." Alexandra Scott raised more than $80,000 for cancer research by selling cups of lemonade from a stand in her front yard in Wynnewood, Pa.

Alexandra has neuroblastoma, a form of cancer that affects mostly babies and small children. Alexandra is able to put up her stand only a few times a year. But when she does, it pays off. On one Saturday in June, she took in $14,000, despite nonstop rain that forced her to pitch a tent.

"When life gives you lemons you should make lemonade, and that's exactly what this little girl has done," said Phil Arkow of the Philadelphia Foundation. "Alex has an amazing spirit, and she has been an inspiration to everyone who knows her."

Alexandra’s cancer was discovered just before he second birthday. The family then moved to Philadelphia to be near the Children’s Hospital where a doctor had her on a new experimental treatment. At age four, while receiving a stem cell transplant, she announced that she wanted to open a lemonade stand and that the proceeds would go to the hospital. Her parents told her she would have to sell a lot of lemonade. She said she did not care. Word spread that she was opening a lemonade stand and on her first Saturday, she took in $2,000.00.

Alex and her mother created Alex's Lemonade Stand Fund with the help of the Philadelphia Foundation. "It was incredible to see a fund agreement being signed by someone at the ripe old age of six," Arkow said. As a first grader, Alexandra was asked what part of school did she like best? She said, going home! (Shelley Emling, Cox News Service, Jun. 10, 2003)

The world likes to tell us that only the rich, power, and famous can accomplish things in life. Obviously that isn’t so, look at what a seven-year-old has done. Perhaps it shames us as healthy adults when we make all sorts of excuses as to why we can’t accomplish the work of the kingdom that we have been called to do. What are the common excuses? I don’t have the time, I don’t have the money, and I don’t have the skill. We need to learn that these are not the things that God is interested in. God is more concerned about our faithfulness and our obedience. In these verses, we learn that God can do great things with the little that we have.

After Jesus sent the disciples on a missionary trip, they returned to report all the things that God had done. Jesus told them, "Come away by yourselves to a lonely place and rest a while." Jesus recognized that they needed a time of solitude to soak it all in, to grow in their faith. We are all that way, particularly in our society where everything moves so fast. We need to take time to deliberately be with God. Church is one of those places where we can do that.

However, their retreat was short circuited. The Sea of Galilee is not that big and the people could see where they were going. So, they ran ahead of them on the shore and met them there. I am sure that it was a great disappointment to the disciples and even to Jesus. They needed a rest. They had been so busy that they could not find the time to even eat! But, there they were. Jesus felt great compassion for them, for they were like sheep without a shepherd.

Jesus taught them all day. Toward evening, the disciples became concerned. What were these people going to eat? They were in the wilderness, some distance out of town. They came from all over the place on the spur of the moment. Surely it was not the disciple’s problem was it? What interest was it of theirs if they ate or not? They did not want it to be their worry. So, they told Jesus that he needed to send them away so the people could buy food.

Jesus hardly ever responds the way we think he ought. Jesus tells them, "You give them something to eat." This stunned the disciples. It was an impossible task. These were fairly poor men who had given up their jobs to follow Jesus. It would have taken 200 denarii worth of bread to feed them. That was about eight months’ wages for one man! It was an impossible thing that Jesus asked them to do. They cannot imagine a way to do this.

Jesus does not give up so easily. The impossible is not as daunting to him as it is to us. "How many loaves do you have? Go look!" The disciples may not have had the imagination to see past this problem, but they were faithful. They went out and searched and found that they had five barley loaves of bread and two fish, something like a sardine.

Five loaves and two fish, that was enough. The disciples must have stayed confused as Jesus went about ministering to people. It must have been a strange feeling when he told them to have the people sit by groups on the grass. They lined up in an orderly manner in groups of hundreds and fifties. Jesus took the loaves and fishes and looked to heaven and blessed the food and then began to break it and serve it. Everyone one was fed that day, all 5, 000 of them. And they were satisfied, that is, they were full. Then the disciples were ordered to pick up the leftovers and there were twelve baskets full of leftovers. That’s good evidence that it was not a pot luck dinner. When we have one, all the bowls are empty! I have often wondered where the baskets came from. One commentator said that they Jews were famous for carrying around large baskets as a carry all. The disciples probably had the baskets in the boat.

The Christian reader will see two parallels as they read this miracle of feeding the hungry crowd. We remember the feeding of Israel in the wilderness with manna from heaven. God met their needs. This is a reminder from the past that God is more than able to take care of his people. The other parallel is a future event. Jesus uses the language of the Lord’s Supper. He takes up the bread and he looks up into heaven and he blesses it and breaks it. It reminds us, not only of the Lord’s Supper, but of the great banquet we will attend in heaven when we celebrate eternity with him.

We live between the times of the past glory of Israel and the future glory of heaven. It is a time of faith and trust. Yet, we tend to worry about a lot things. We particularly worry when we think God wants us to do something that seems impossible at the moment. Our common sense, our experience, tends to get in the way of God’s projects. When God says you do it, we say with what? The economy is bad, we are broke, we are unschooled and untrained. No one will listen to us, we don’t have the time. We just can’t.

When God hands us a problem, he already knows the answer. He is waiting for us to respond to him in faith. You may not have much to give, but what you have, God can use it to his glory. We never see God do great things because we refuse to be faithful and obedient. Can we really say we have been faithful if what we do, does not cause us to be utterly dependant on God? What right do we have to worry about something that God is in charge of? If he can feed 5,000 people with five loaves and two fish, don’t you think he will be faithful to us when he calls us to do his work? Of course he will be faithful. The question is, will we?

Some will need to step out on faith when God gives you an opportunity to bear witness, because you are shy. Others need to step out on faith when it comes to tithing because you are greedy or a bad manager. Some of you need to take a step of faith when it comes to facing temptation. You need to win over some sin and it will not happen until you do what God tells you do to. What are the challenges we face as a church that requires us to stop worrying and start acting faithfully? Can we say we have been obedient to Jesus? There is great joy in taking the risk of faith. We are the most powerful when we live by faith in obedience to God.

So, God has asked us to do the impossible, don’t worry about it! Just look forward to seeing how God is going to use you to get it done. That is the exciting side of faith.