Hardened Hearts

They had not understood the incident of the loaves. On the contrary, their hearts were hardened. Mark 6:52

"Sasakit in bie." (Life is getting harder), I always heard these words from my deceased father when I was growing up. He narrated their difficult family life going through the Japanese occupation in the Philippines. He told us about the complicated transition he made to himself from being a farmer to becoming a small business owner. My father expounded on how much effort he puts in to gain a single centavo in order to bring food on the table. Today his eight children all finished schooling. His children live in somewhat comfortable level nowadays. Recently, I find myself uttering the same exact words. Recession hits my own family. We are caught in the midst of reduction of our benefits in my workplace. No salary increase happening. Since I am the only one working in the family, we have to fit in our bodies in the shrinking mat. I shared my fears and worries with my wife about our situation and she pointed me to trust God and His providence for us. With all the experience of God's intervention in our lives from my father's time and up now to our time, my heart is hardened.

I saw myself in Jesus' disciples. Their hearts were hardened. They did not understand the multiplication of the bread. They did not understand that in every situation our living God is in control. We always look at the present concern and do not recognize God's mighty actions in the past. Jesus will do more with less. Jesus comes to rescue us from the heavy winds. Jesus comes to assure us and to eliminate our fears. When in turmoil, Jesus assures us of His calming and comforting presence. Jesus stays with us in our sinking boat. This is the same Jesus of the past, present and future. We can hold on to His faithfulness in the past decades of our lives. We can look back on how much He has provided for our forefathers' needs. We can anchor our faith in His promises and understand how He fills our lack.

And when we understand that God multiplies and that He is in control, our hearts are hardened no more.