the good news is… together, the impossible is possible
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Far More Abundantly | Lauren Wright Pittman
Hand-carved block printed with oil-based ink on paper with gold leaf detail
ARTIST STATEMENT
I read this Ephesians text alongside the feeding of the five thousand. I placed Jesus at the center of the image,15 but he did not feed the crowds alone. He asked his disciples to offer what they had. They responded with meager resources, yet those small gifts were enough.
Through the lens of Ephesians, if Jesus were to ask us today what we have to give, our answer would be:
We have the power you have given us to do the impossible. The same power that turned five loaves and two fish into a feast for thousands— with leftovers—empowers us “to accomplish far more abundantly than all we can ask or imagine.” Do we allow this truth to settle into our bones and animate our actions?
I’ll admit, I tried to avoid this passage because it felt overly optimistic in light of today’s world. People still go hungry. Wars rage. The earth groans under our misuse. Yet if we reimagine the systems we created, studies show it is possible for every human being to have what they need.16 That would require massive restructuring, international cooperation, and the reallocation of resources—but not more than we already possess. We don’t need a miracle of multiplication. We simply need to use what we’ve been given.
In a world convinced of scarcity, this is astonishingly good news. We already have enough. And as my mentor used to say, “Enough is abundance.” What will we do with this abundance? Is it too lofty to dream of a world that sustains all of life? Perhaps. Yet I believe it is God’s own desire that all may have life, and have it abundantly.17 This is the work before us, accomplished through the power at work within us, through Jesus Christ. Amen.
Written by Rev. Lauren Wright Pittman
LOOK
Consider the archway and what it could symbolize. Do you see a table, a tablet, a boat, a door, a tomb—or all of these things or something else?
15 In the center of the image, Jesus raises his arms and breaks bread. Above Jesus’ hands is a mustard seed. Surrounding the baskets are thin line carvings of mustard flowers. Like the seed, we may be small, but we hold so much potential inside of us. Surrounding the archway are twelve baskets of seven loaves or fish, which take on the shape of flowers. The number twelve represents community, and seven represents wholeness. When everyone has what they need, the community is whole.
16 globalcommonsalliance.org/news/new-research-reveals-path-to-prosperity-for-planet-and-people-if-earths-critical-resources-are-better-shared/
17 John 10:9-11