Christine Caine - A Little Can Do A Lot
A lot of people feel like they're waiting for God to move on their behalf, but really, God is waiting for them. It's like waiting for the other player on the game board to make a move, when it's really your turn. We need to take God's lead and step out. God is able to do so much more in and through our lives than we realize. We just need to take our cue and to do our part. I'm Christine Caine and I have a personal mission to equip and empower people just like you to connect with your God-given purpose and potential. I am so glad you're joining us today. Let's dive right into this message together.
Hey everyone, I am so excited to be back again this week. We're going to talk about how a little can do a lot. So often we devalue the little that we have and we do nothing with it because we see the huge need that is out there, but I'm going to show you today from scripture how a little in the hands of a big God can end up doing a lot.
We're going to turn today in the book of Mark chapter six. It's a familiar passage of scripture. In Mark chapter six it says, "The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. And he said to them, come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while. For many were coming and going and they had no leisure even to eat". They were obviously not Greek, they were Jewish because Greeks always find the time to eat. I just want you to know that. And they definitely were not Texan because Texans always find an opportunity to eat. "And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves".
Now many saw them going and recognized them, "And they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them. When they went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many, many things. And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, this is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat".
You've got to do this Jesus, because the Jerusalem food court is going to close and they're going to run out of pita bread and hummus. That is the Christine Amplified Version. Just in case anybody is seeing this. "But he answered them, you give them something to eat. And they said to him, shall we go and buy 200 denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat? And he said to them, how many loaves do you have? Go and see. And when they found out they said, five, and two fish. Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass".
So not the brown grass, just the green grass. I wanted you to note that. "So they sat down in groups by 100s and by 50s and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. And they all ate and were satisfied and they took up 12 basketfuls of broken pieces". If you underline your Bible at all, I want you to circle that right there, "broken pieces". Highlight it if it's your Bible on your phone, on your iPad, on any manner of i-ness, just highlight it right there. "And of the fish. And those who ate the loaves were 5.000 men".
I'm going to stick with you. I know this is a lot of scripture. You're catching up on all your Bible reading plan for the year right now. It says, "Immediately, he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had taken leave of them, he went up to the mountain to pray. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. And he saw that that we're making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night, he came to them walking on the sea".
Because that's what you do when you're God. Why hire boat when you can just walk on water. It's part of being God. It's a perk of being God. Really, it's your Godness. "But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, take heart, it is I. Do not be afraid. And he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened".
So a lot of scripture right there, but I really couldn't stop because it never finished until verse 52 when Jesus got back in the boat after the storm and the Bible says that the disciples did not understand about the loaves, their hearts were hardened. Most of us either teach this text just starting with the breaking of the bread and the multiplication of the fish and loaves or the fact that Jesus walked on water in the midst of a storm, but you can't actually separate them because they are so connected and we get right to the end and find out that the disciples actually had no clue what happened on the mountain.
And so we're going to start right on the mountain where the story starts 'cause the story always starts before the story. Of course, the disciples had been preaching and teaching all day. They had come to Jesus and they were telling him what had happened. They were accountable for all that they had preached and all that they had taught. And then Jesus said, "Hey, I know that you need to go to the other side and have some rest because you've been working really hard. I understand that you need some rest".
And so they got in a boat to go across to the other side. But the interesting thing is when they got to the desolate place, when they got to the other side, we know they were taught, they were working so hard, they didn't have a chance to eat, they'd gotten to the other side. The Bible says that there was a whole crowd waiting for them 5.000 men were counted. That's how you counted in those days. But if you include sort of women and children, theologians and commentators would say, I like to include women and children. I am a woman, I was a child. And so if you include that, we get to 15.000 people, they think. We're up on that mountain.
So this is what I need to tell you. Jesus said to the disciples, we're going to go to the other side and we're going to have a break. Now, this was before Facebook. This was before Twitter. This was before Instagram. This was before Snapchat. This was before any form of social media. This was before any major news broadcast or radio. I want to know how Jesus, not handing out any business cards, nor putting out a post on Facebook. How did 15.000 people turn up to what Jesus was going to be? Word had spread so quickly that 15.000 people were waiting for him before he ever got there?
Do you realize there was a time when it didn't matter who was going to be the guest speaker, who was going to be the guest? Honestly, it was just enough that Jesus was in town. If you just knew that Jesus was in town, you were going to be there ahead of time. You didn't need a Twitter blowout. You did not need to blow up social media. It was enough that Jesus was going to be there. Or for a church where it would be just enough. It doesn't matter who's speaking on Sunday. Jesus is going to be in the house, I'm going to church. It doesn't matter. I know that Jesus is going to be there, so I'm going to turn up and I'm going to be there, and that's exactly what happened. His words were so magnetic, so attractional, so life transforming that people would churn in because Jesus, Jesus was going to be there. And the fact is that he begins to teach them.
Now, this is interesting to me because remember they had gone to have a rest. Now this is what happens when revival. This is how you spell revival, in case you're wondering. You spell revival, W-O-R-K. It means work. It means that you were going to go and have a break, but oh, we're having a revival. Jesus is in town. That means that we're not having a break.
So all of this life, we just need to have balance. This is how I balance my life. It's perfectly imbalanced, and that's the way that it goes. And you know what? Until the day I get to glory, that's the way it's going to be 'cause every time I think I've just got it managed, every time I think I've just got it in control, Jesus turns up and it's like, woo, okay, we're going to open another A21 office. Well, there you go. We're going to start another 100 Propel chapters. Because that's what happens in revival. You want to help people, you want to serve people. You're not looking at how little you can do. You're looking at how much you can help people and how much you can do. We need to be a people that are not looking to escape from how much we can do for God, but step into how much we can do for God.
So the Bible says that, "Jesus had compassion on them". In verse 34, "And he began to teach them". Now you have to understand that the Word of God and teaching God's word is an act of compassion. I help to rescue the victims of human trafficking. Social justice is not the only act of compassion. But an act of compassion is also teaching the word. Those of you that have tuned in today and you're sitting under the powerful teaching of the Word of God, it's because I love you and I know this word saves lives.
We live in a culture that is trying to minimize the Word. We live in a culture that's trying to dilute the Word. We live in a culture that's trying to tell you not all of this is really true. You can pick and choose the bits that you want. You can cut out the bits that you don't want. I want you to know it's all true. Every word of it is inspired by God and it is profitable for correction, for rebuke, for teaching. It is living, it is active. It is sharper than any two-edged sword. Jesus had such compassion on the people. What did he do? He began to teach them many things.
I have a huge compassion for the people, so what am I doing through our Equip & Empower program? I'm here wanting to teach you many things because I know that this word gives life. I know that this word brings liberty. I know that this word save. Jesus saved my soul. This word saved my mind. This word saved my life. It was the Word of God.
Romans 12 verse two says that, "We are not to be conformed to this world, but we are to be transformed", how? "By the renewing of our mind". That means I replaced my thoughts with God's thoughts. That means I meditate on this word, I memorize this word. This word is living and it is not like any other book. This is God's holy word, and an act of compassion is to teach this. An act of compassion is to memorize, to Hebrews 4:12 tells us that this word is living and active.
Joshua 1:8 tells us that, "We have to meditate on these words day and night, for then, you will make your way prosperous and then you will have great success". This is the greatest success manual you will ever have in your life. If you do what it says, you will make your way prosperous and you will have great success. So that's why Jesus at that time he would have been teaching them the Old Testament scriptures but that's why he taught them the word. He had compassion on them.
And so he began to teach them. And so then the disciples, they knowing Jesus is teaching. And they know that when he starts talking, we don't know when he's going to stop. And so he's talking, talking, talking. And so because the disciples have had nothing to eat, we know that from the beginning of the story. I could just imagine they just run up to him and you'd have like Peter and Phillip and Bartholomew going, you tell him, you tell him, you tell him, you tell him. And so they're all running up to Jesus and then they say, hey Jesus, the people are hungry.
'Cause that's what we always say. When we're hungry, we want to blame the people. That's what, like they used to do, it's like their fault, they want. Jesus, before the food court closes down, send them, send them to the food court. And I love what happens here because Jesus turns around, in verse 37 he says, "You give them something to eat". Jesus cracks me up because what he's showing us here is more often than not, we are the answer to our own prayer. That's what he's saying like we're praying, God, send revival. He goes, I did it to you.
We think that God has said, give me all the reasons why you can't give them something to eat. Because that's what they thought. They didn't think that because Jesus didn't ask them a question. He gave them a command. He said, "You give them something to eat". But they started with, but we can't, that's going to take a full year's salary and that's going to take that that 'cause that's what we do. We start with all our buts. But I remember when I felt the Holy Spirit say, Christine, I want you to start A21. And you know, I thought I mustn't be hearing right. So I thought I'd better give God a list of why I can't because I know he's God, but he's obviously forgotten.
You know, so I'm not, but God, I can't do it. But God, I'm a woman. But God, I live in Australia. That's really far from Greece. But God, I don't have a spare $10 million. But God, this is Russian and Albanian mafia, they kill people. But God, you know, I just popped out another child. I am 40 years old. But God... You start your list but God, and God's like in heaven go, oh, I had no idea. Peter, Peter, did you know she's a woman? Bartholomew, did you know she lives in Australia? Could you get me a GPS? I don't know where Australia is. I did not know. Oh, my word, Phillip. Phillip, did you know that she didn't have the money to do this? How's the stocks on wall street? How are we going to do? Do we have to pick up some of our gold pavers and sell them from heaven? Because it looks like it's gone bad on.
That's how we treat God as if he doesn't know. As if he's sitting in shock going, I had no idea. Oh, didn't know you're a woman when I called you. I had no idea, thanks for telling me. I didn't know where you lived. I didn't know what your gift mix was. Wow, I had no idea. Of course, he knows and we just go, but God, but God, I can't, but God.
Moses did the same thing. In Exodus chapter three the Lord said, "I want to set my people free out of slavery, and Moses, I've chosen you to lead them into the Promised Land". And Moses goes, "But God, I am not eloquent". And God's probably thinking, wow, wow, that was going to be the deal-breaker on how I was going to pop the Red Sea. You know, I didn't know how I was going to pop the Red Sea, your eloquence was going to be the that make all the difference as if somehow me on my best day could actually help God do the miracle. I'm not that good. Only God can do the miracle. It sounds so pious, doesn't it? When we get back, oh, it sounds humble, but actually the root of it is pride. It's saying that my limitation is greater than God's ability to do something through my life. That's what the root of it is. It says, I'm not trusting God to be supernatural. I need to help God.
And God goes, no, I already know you can't. I'm not using, I'm not looking for your ability, I'm looking for your availability. I already know that you can't do it. And so we begin, but God, but God, but God. But you know what we really need? We need a buttectonomy in the body of Christ. We need to get our big fat butts out of the way because it's not about what I can't do, it's about who he is and what he can do.
So he says to the disciples, he says, I want you, in verse 38 right here. And he said to them, "How many loaves do you have? Go and see". He asked the disciples to go and see what they had. Because miracles always begin with a recognition of what we have. God cannot multiply what you do not recognize. So God's saying, I need you to go back and I need you to see in the very circumstance that you are in, there are the ingredients of a miracle. There is the opportunity for great breakthrough.
And so what we need to do is stop looking at what we don't have and begin to look, what do we have? God, I need a miracle in my marriage, where can I start? What do I have? Let me find one good thing. His eyes, okay, that's where I'm going to start, with that. Lord, let me find one good thing with my kids. Let me find one good thing with my job. You've got to give God some ingredients to work with. And so he says, I want you to go and see the miracles. I want you to go and see the ingredients that you have.
So, can you imagine what it would be like? Hey, anybody got some lunch? Jesus wants to feed 15.000 people. Did anybody's mother pack 15.000 pieces of pizza bread, anyway? Anyone got some spare hummus? And so everyone's freaking out. They're going, 15.000 people? Jesus wants to feed 15.000 and they're all looking at their lunch because do you think there was just one little boy with lunch that day? Let's be real, these are Jewish mothers. You don't think the Jewish mothers would have sent the kids off with some lunch? There would've been more than just one kid with lunch. But the fact was everyone was looking around and they're thinking, I don't have enough for everyone.
So they did what we all do. We think because we can't do everything, we end up doing nothing instead of the one thing that would activate something. Jesus never said, can you do it all? He said, what have you got? And isn't it interesting that the Bible says that there were 5.000 men counted that day, and it was the little boy who was uncounted that provided the ingredients for the miracle that counted? And the thing that I've discovered is God will always use the ones that are uncounted to provide the ingredients for the miracle that will count. God will use the ones that everybody else says you don't count.
And you might be watching this today and you might feel like you are not smart enough. You are not talented enough, you are not gifted enough, you are not connected enough. You are not resourced enough. You are not educated. You just feel like you are not enough. Everyone else has counted you out. You went to the wrong school, you came from the wrong family. You've made too many mistakes. Everyone else has said you will never amount to anything. You don't count for anything. You're not right in the way the world would measure you. I'm here to tell you that God always uses the ones that nobody else counts. The ones that everybody else discounts for his glory and for his purpose.
I am the kid that was left in a hospital unnamed and unwanted. I am the kid that was sexually abused for 12 years. I'm the one that everyone else discounted and God said, I might just be able to use her for my glory. God specializes in taking the ones that nobody else counts. That little boy just said, here you go. I dunno what you could do with five loaves and two fishes.
I remember that's how I went with A21 I said to God, well, I don't know anything about trafficking. It's not my degree. I don't know anything about how you stop mafia rings. I don't know how you prosecute people and traffickers and put 'em in jail. I don't know how we're going to rescue children and women. I don't have any context, but God, I've got a mouth, I've got a mouth and I've got the ear of the church and I've got the ear of people. So God, I guess I can begin to talk about, that's all I knew to do.
Who would have known nine years later that we would have around the world 15 different offices, that we would be in 11 countries, that we would have seen multiplied hundreds of girls rescued and children, that we would have seen dozens of traffickers put in jail, that we even in the last two weeks alone have had 22 rescues in two weeks alone. These are days I would have only dreamt of in days gone by and it started because I went, well, I've got five loaves and two fish. I don't really know what I'm doing, God, but you put this in my heart. I've got my mouth and I've got the ear of the church. So God, I'm just going to start.
And everything in my life that God has done has begun with five loaves and two fishes. Any time I've started anything, whether it's A21, whether it's Propel, it's like, well, God, I don't really know what to do. I know that we want to help women internalize a leadership identity. I know that we want to help activate women to fulfill their God-given purpose and their God-given destiny. I know that we want to work across the whole stream of the church, from the charismatic to the evangelical and everything in between, but God, I don't quite know how to start.
It's like, well, Christine, start with the relationships that you have. Start with the connections that you have. Start using the words that you have and who would have known only two and 1/2 years later that we would have over 1500 chapters and groups all throughout the country, that we would be packing out arenas around the nation, that we would be connected and empowering women in lead days. Who would have known? Only God knows, why? Because I said, here's my five fish, or here's my five pieces of bread and here's my two pieces of fish. God, I don't know what you can do with that, but if you can do anything.
And the thing that I've discovered is that God has always only ever taken a little and turned it into a lot. He said to them, I want you to feed them. Go out and have a look at what you've got. And there's some of you today, and this is your time. You have despised your day of small beginning. You have looked at the little that you have and you have discounted it, and you have thought it could never amount to anything. And because of that you have just set and you feel like God has overlooked you. You feel like God has forsaken you. You feel like God has favored everybody else except you. You feel that if you just had more, you would do more.
That if you were just more gifted, you would do more. And God is asking you, what do you have? He's not asking you, what don't you have? Stop listing all of the things that you do not have. Stop rehearsing all of the things that you have lost. You cannot work with what you've lost, but you could work with what you've got left. I've got to put 1500 chapters and groups into his hands because that's a loaf and a fish today. Now when I started, it was the one, now it's 1500. But are you still in faith? And that's my question. Are you still giving all of what you've got?
That's what the little boy did. He was all in. It was an all-in Christianity. It was, this is all I've got, and God said, awesome. I didn't ask for what you haven't got, I've just asked for all of what you do have. And what we have to do to remain in faith is continue to give God what we have and to see God exceedingly multiply and go above and beyond anything we could have ever imagined. Your little in the hands of a big God can end up doing a lot on the earth today. Let me pray for you.
Father, I thank you for your word. Lord, I thank you for the multiplication anointing that you have, that God, your mathematics is not addition, it's multiplication. Five loaves and two fishes in your hand feeds more than 15.000 people. So Father, I pray right now in the name of Jesus for a multiplication anointing, Father to be released, God, into the lives and the hands of every person on the other side of the screen. Father, we don't want to hang onto our little, we want to give our little into the hands of a big God and see you take that little and turn it into a lot for the glory of your name sake. I pray in Jesus name. Amen. Amen, and amen.