The occasion is the miracle of the feeding of the five thousand, which is the only miracle which all four of the gospel writers recorded.  In addition to recording the miracle, they all tell us that there was enough food left to fill twelve baskets.  But only John tells us that Jesus commanded the disciples to gather the fragments, and the reason He did so: “that nothing be lost.”

    Why did Jesus give this unusual command to gather up the fragments?  It certainly wasn’t because He wasn’t able to perform another miracle and produce more bread.  Both Matthew and Mark record a later miracle where Jesus fed four thousand with seven loaves and a few small fish.  So He could make more.  Why then did He tell them to gather up the fragments?

    I think one reason for His command is that He wanted to emphasize the importance of even the littlest things.  There is nothing in God’s world which is unimportant.  We are to conserve everything.

    There are fragments of time which we all have.  Many people have large blocks of time that they have little or no control over, but all of us have fragments.  What are we doing with them?  A preacher friend of mine always carries a book with him, so he can use the little pieces of time to read and improve himself.  I once had a college professor who decided not to waste the time spent in his car, waiting for his wife.  He typed lines of poetry on cards, and spent the fragments of time memorizing them.  I read during the TV commercials.  It is amazing how much can be done when we consciously set ourselves to gather up the fragments of our time.

    There are fragments of money which we need to pay attention to.  I believe the first claim on our money is the tithe.  I believe it should be given first, by faith, in love.  Then there are other important things which lay claim to the remaining money.  But even though there are many claims, most of us have a little bit of money that we might waste if we don’t consciously conserve it.  A friend from other years got a large jug into which he placed all his pocket change at the end of each day.  One evening he poured it out and counted and rolled it.  He was amazed at how much he collected in a short time.  We might follow his example, or use some other plan to gather up the fragments of our money.

    There are fragments of ability also which need to be conserved.  Each of us has a special gift or ability.  Something we do well.  We should be doing that thing for the glory of the Lord.  But we also have lesser abilities which often lie unused.  They are important too.  There are situations where even the smallest ability may seem very large.  We need to gather up the fragments of ability.

    Whether it is time or money or ability or some other fragment of life, we have it as a gift from God.  He has a purpose for it.  And it seems that I can hear Him say,

    “Gather up the fragments that remain, that nothing be lost.”