No Side Characters

“I guess I’m just going to be a side-character…”

I read these words written in a student’s journal entry yesterday. This child was expressing their frustration and despondency about feeling ignored, cast aside, and un-included, and it touched my heart deeply. Few among us can truly say they have never felt the sting of rejection, or the longing to be included and accepted among brethren. It is a painful, universal struggle all of us experience to some degree or another. 

During my prayer time yesterday, the Spirit brought to mind Jesus multiplying the fishes and loaves. He pointed out that there was no shortage of religious “food” being shared in the land of Israel at the time, but the only food that could truly satisfy the people, passed through the Lord’s hands by way of a child. Jesus took the meager portion of a child and multiplied it to satisfy the longings of thousands. So today, as I share my response to my student, I share a child’s portion that perhaps the Lord will multiply to fill the spiritual hunger of multitudes:

…”There are no side-characters in God’s kingdom… there’s just a whole lot of people trying to figure out their fit and purpose. Some are just louder than others. Some are more awkward than others. Some develop more slowly, some mature more quickly. So many souls, going in so many directions, with so many perspectives and notions of what God wants from them, or how He wants us to be. But Jesus already gave us the answer to all of that…

He said ‘Follow Me…’ and ‘Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another’ (John 13:34; 21:21,22)”…

(John 6:9,11; Matt 15:37) “Here is a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but what difference will these make among so many?”…Then Jesus took the loaves and the fish, gave thanks, and distributed to those who were seated as much as they wanted…They all ate and were satisfied…

(1 Cor 12:24,25) …But God has composed the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it, so that there should be no division in the body, but that its members should have mutual concern for one another.

(Rom 12:3-5) Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but think of yourself with sober judgment, according to the measure of faith God has given you. Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.