A Template For Giving 

As a Christian charity, compassion and caring for others is the foundation for all that we do. But like  any organisation, we at times need to touch base and question: are we doing this right? Is our  operating model effective? And so, we look towards our leader to see how He provided food for the  poor – what did Jesus do? 

There is a story in Matthew 14:13-21 (repeated in other gospels) which describes how five thousand  men, plus their families, were fed. Jesus had been teaching a large crowd of people and healing their  sick. When evening came, his disciples suggested sending the crowds away to buy food for  themselves. But Jesus said to them: “They do not need to go; you give them something to eat!” The  disciples only had five loaves of bread and two fish, donated by a young boy in the crowd, which  certainly would not feed so many people. 

But Jesus told them to bring the food to him, and after ordering the crowds to sit on the grass, he  blessed it and began dividing it, giving it to the disciples to distribute to the people. ‘And they all ate  and were satisfied, and they picked up what was left over of the broken pieces: twelve full baskets’.  

What does this story tell us? This is the model for what we are doing at VBDS. 

1. Jesus felt compassion for the hunger of the people. This is our starting point. He said: ‘Feed  my sheep (not literal sheep! People!). We feed His sheep, the people around us who are in  need.  

2. The disciples brought the food to Jesus – five loaves and two fish: ‘There is a boy here who  has five barley loaves and two fish’, John 6:9a. Fruit, veg, eggs, funding, cardboard boxes, are donated to VBDS by many individuals, supermarkets, schools, community gardens,  businesses, and even stately homes, and is brought into the central hub in Potton by VBDS  volunteers. 

3. The bread and fish were donated but Jesus took responsibility for receiving it, blessing it,  multiplying it and handing it to the disciples to distribute. The food we receive needs sorting,  and often cleaning up – wilted leaves removed, soil washed off etc – and collected together  so that it is ready to pack into boxes.  

4. Jesus broke the bread and fish and handed it to the disciples to distribute to the crowd. VBDS  volunteers pack the food attractively into boxes, varying the amount of produce according  to the size of the family, and deliver it to those referred to us as being in financial need.  

5. There was an abundance of food. Everyone ate their fill and there were 12 baskets of  leftovers. At times we have more than we need, but nothing is wasted. The surplus is offered  to the public via the VBDS Storehouse, and everything that is not fresh enough goes into  compost boxes, to grow more food next year. 

6. After his disciples left in the boat, ‘He left for the mountain to pray’. Please pray for us, that  we will continue to do this work with compassion and kindness, to serve those He loves.  
If you would like to be involved, please contact us. Although we are a faith-based organisation we  welcome anyone from any background who shares our passion about helping those in need to have  a healthy diet. We’d love to hear from you. 

Photo by Kate Remmer on Unsplash