Faithful With What We Have

I sat down to record Coffee Talk and immediately faced one small but deeply personal problem:

I did not have coffee.

Not one espresso pod. Not one backup cup. Nothing.

Now, we do not need to dwell on the extent of my caffeine dependency. That is a devotional for another day! But I had already prepared to record, and I wanted my espresso.

I could have focused entirely on what was missing:

I don’t have coffee.
This is already take two.
The dogs keep interrupting me.
These are not the conditions I wanted.

Instead, I looked around and realized, Well, I do have chai tea—and it has caffeine!

It was not what I planned. It was not what I preferred. But it was something I already had in my hand that could serve the moment.

So I poured the chai, turned on the camera and said:

“Today’s Coffee Talk is brought to you by chai tea…against my will.”

And then I showed up.

What Do You Have?

This small moment reminded me of a much greater moment in Scripture.

A large crowd had followed Jesus to a remote place. As evening approached, the disciples saw an impossible problem: thousands of people needed food, and there was nowhere nearby to purchase enough.

Their attention naturally went to what was missing.

They did not have enough food.
They did not have enough money.
They did not have enough resources.
They did not have a practical solution.

But Jesus did not ask them to manufacture what they lacked.

He asked:

“How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
—Mark 6:38

The answer was five loaves and two fish.

Five loaves and two fish could not feed five thousand men—plus the women and children who were also present. From a human perspective, what they had was clearly insufficient.

But Jesus did not dismiss the small offering because it could not solve the entire problem on its own.

He took what was available.

He gave thanks.

He broke the bread.

He placed it back into the disciples’ hands and allowed them to participate in distributing His provision.

Everyone ate. Everyone was satisfied. And there was more remaining afterward than there had been at the beginning.

The miracle did not begin with what was missing.

It began with the question:

What do you have?

A Culture Built Around What Is Missing

We live in a culture that constantly directs our attention toward what we do not have.

Every commercial seems to suggest:

Get this, and then you will have peace.
Buy this, and then you will feel complete.
Achieve this, and then you will finally be enough.
Become this, and then your life can begin.

Phone calls, advertisements, social media and ordinary conversations can leave us believing that contentment is always one purchase, accomplishment or improved circumstance away.

But that is not what God is asking of us.

God is not waiting for us to become complete enough to be useful to Him. He is not asking us to collect every resource, remove every limitation or create perfect conditions before we obey.

In Christ, we are already fully known, fully loved and securely held.

What He asks from us is trust.

He asks us to bring what we have, place it into His hands and follow the guidance of the Holy Spirit with a grateful heart.

Gratitude Changes Our Posture

Jesus took the loaves and fish and gave thanks.

That detail matters.

He did not first complain about the size of the offering. He did not shame the disciples because they had failed to prepare enough food. He received what was available with gratitude.

Gratitude does not deny what is missing.

I was still out of coffee.

The disciples still faced thousands of hungry people.

The need was real, and the available resources appeared small. But gratitude changed the posture of the heart. It shifted attention away from scarcity and toward the presence of God.

A grateful heart says:

This may not be what I expected, but it is what I have been given.

This may not appear sufficient, but God is not limited by my assessment.

I may not understand the plan, but I can trust the leadership of the Holy Spirit.

I do not need to control the outcome. I only need to offer what is in my hands.

Faithfulness Does Not Require Perfect Conditions

I wanted espresso.

I had chai.

I still showed up.

That sentence is humorous, but the lesson underneath it is serious.

How often do we delay obedience because the circumstances do not look the way we imagined?

We tell ourselves we will begin when we have more money, more time, more energy, more confidence, more support or greater certainty.

But Jesus may be asking a different question:

What do you have right now?

Do you have five quiet minutes to pray?

Do you have one encouraging word to offer?

Do you have a skill that could serve someone?

Do you have a small amount of money you can steward faithfully?

Do you have an imperfect story that might help another person feel less alone?

Do you have chai when you would really prefer espresso?

Faithfulness does not require ideal conditions. It requires a willing heart.

When we place what we have before Jesus, He determines what it can become.

Returning to Center

Returning to Center means resisting the cultural message that we are always missing the one thing required to become peaceful, complete or useful.

Our peace is not waiting inside the next purchase.

Our identity is not waiting inside the next achievement.

Our sufficiency is not found in perfect circumstances.

Our center is Christ.

The Holy Spirit helps us recognize what has already been entrusted to us and guides us in using it faithfully. We may still acknowledge our needs and desires, but we do not have to become governed by them.

Instead of asking only, What am I missing? we can pause and ask:

Lord, what do I have?

What have You already placed in my hands?

How are You asking me to use it today?

Today’s offering may feel small. But small things surrendered to Jesus are never insignificant.

A Question for Reflection

What imperfect circumstance have you allowed to delay your obedience?

What do you already have that you can place into the hands of Jesus today?

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Join a community of women learning to return to center, recognize what God has already placed in their hands and move forward with greater peace, faith and intentionality.

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Prayer

Father, thank You for the gifts, resources, relationships and opportunities You have already placed in my hands. Forgive me for the times I have focused so intently on what is missing that I have overlooked Your present provision.

Teach me to recognize the voice and leadership of the Holy Spirit. Give me a grateful heart that trusts You even when my circumstances are imperfect and my resources appear small.

Help me remember that I do not need to create the miracle. My responsibility is to bring You what I have, obey Your guidance and trust You with the outcome.

Turn my attention away from the messages that tell me I need more in order to be peaceful, complete or enough. Remind me that my identity, security and sufficiency are found in Christ.

Show me what You have already placed in my hands, and give me the courage to use it faithfully today.

In Jesus name I pray, Amen.