The Kingdom Way: Giving, Not Taking
The Kingdom Way: Giving, Not Taking
Introduction
This morning began with an unexpected thought — not about eating food, but about the long path food takes before it ever reaches our table. That simple thought opened a door into something deeper: how we receive, how we take, how we give, and how Yeshua teaches us to see provision in a completely different way.
Scripture
A passage that anchors the reflection.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”
— Matthew 4:4
Reflection
A personal moment that opens into spiritual insight.
I woke up thinking about food — not the craving for it, but the whole process behind it. As white Americans, we go to grocery stores, buy in bulk, store things in pantries and refrigerators, and then choose what we want when we want it. And far too often, some of that food ends up in the trash. Perfectly good food that someone hungry could have eaten. It feels wasteful, and it says something about how we live.
My mind went back to a conversation I once had with a young man from the Mescalero Apache reservation. He told me something that has stayed with me ever since:
“Our culture is about giving. Your culture is about taking.”
He wasn’t angry — just honest. And he was right.
We took their homelands.
We took animals without honoring them.
We took buffalo by the thousands for hides, leaving the meat to rot in the fields.
I can only imagine how painful that must have been for them to witness. As I sat with that memory this morning, I realized again how deeply that taking‑mindset has shaped me too.
Connection to Today
Where the reflection meets the teachings of Yeshua.
My thoughts turned to Yeshua. There are two stories where He feeds the multitudes (Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9, John 6). The people didn’t come to Him expecting a meal. They came for healing, teaching, hope — and yet Yeshua saw their hunger and fed them.
He gave.
He always gives.
And when He spoke about food and drink, He spoke in ways that go far beyond our physical needs. He talked about bread that never leaves us hungry and water that never leaves us thirsty. He was pointing us toward the Kingdom — toward a life where our needs are met in ways we can’t yet imagine.
Lately I’ve been thinking about that Kingdom. What will it be like? What will we do? What will it feel like to be in the presence of Father God and Yeshua?
They are beyond anything we know in this life. It stretches the imagination just to try to picture it. But one thing I do know: in that Kingdom, taking will no longer define us. We will live in the flow of God’s giving — receiving from Him, and giving freely to one another.
Prayer
A closing moment of surrender and invitation.
Father God, teach me to see provision the way You see it. Free me from the habits of taking, storing, and holding tightly. Shape my heart to give as Yeshua gives — generously, compassionately, and without fear. Prepare me for Your Kingdom, where every need is met in You alone. Amen.
Related Posts
Other reflections in the Unity Series.
