The Feeding of the 5000 from a Different Point of View

It was a Sunday, no I didn't go to church, I was at an Offroad Race in Las Vegas 1985. I was team Capt of a pretty successful Team Called Sandak Racing out of Corona. I had just arrived home from the race and it was about 6-7pm at night. A friend of mine had given me a new bible and it was laying on the coffee table. whew, was I tired. I picked up the bible and began to read. Somewhere in the old testament. Pretty cool what was happening back then. I was laying on the couch and I fell asleep with the bible opened on my chest.

 The Incredible Dream:

I was playing with this thing that looked like a hoola hoop with a stick. It was fun, I was about 10 years old. I was living with my sister, mom and dad on the shores of the Sea of Galilee. My mom was standing in the doorway and called me over to her and so I went. She said to me, "Son, your sister is sick and I have to stay here with her, your father is on the sea fishing." Then she handed me a basket and some denari and said, "it is you that must go to the market and get 5 loaves of bread and some fish" So I took the basket and feeling kinda proud I began my journey to the fish market. (it felt about a 1.5 – 2 mile walk)

The water was on my left as I walked North up the beach towards the mouth of the Jordan River. AS I approached the fish market I could see there were a lot of people. So I went straight to the bread tent and asked for 5 loaves of bread. The lady smiled and put the 5 loaves in the basket for me and I gave her the denari. I still had some denari left and went over to the fish tent and did the same thing. I handed over the denari and the man smiled and gave me two fish. I thanked him and began my journey back home. The water was now on my right (Heading south). I really felt proud that mom would ask me to go all by myself to get the bread and fish.

I was about 1/2 way and off to my left there were a bunch of people beginning to gather on the hill to my left. I thought there sure is a lot of people, I wonder why they are there? and Continued to walk along the beach. Then a young man ran by me on my left saying “HE's Here!” Off to my right I saw a boat that was coming ashore. It had about a dozen men in it. It rolled ashore just in front of me. They all got out. The man with a beard and white robe got out and began to walk  up the hill.

When I got even with the bow of the boat the man turned around and looked at me. He had the most incredible eyes of peace! He looked right at me and smiled. Then, he turned around and continued up the hill to this little plateau. Not thinking, I turned and followed Him. When we got to the plateau, I saw this rock so I went to the rock and sat down with my basket in front of me.  I could see all around! there were thousands of people all around! He began to speak.

Nobody said a word, he spoke with this voice that could be heard over the whole hill! People were in awe. I just sat in amazement. Then he went back into the circle of friends that came with him and said, "We need to feed these people." The guy on his right said, "Feed Them? Where are we going to get the money to feed them?" Then the guy on  his left pointed a finger at me, and said, "I See a young child with some bread and fish but what is that to this many people?"  Then the man got up and walked towards me with those incredible eyes of peace and reached for my basket. He never said a word. He picked up my basket and walked over to the center of the circle of friends and lifted up my basket and gave thanks to God and then said, "Take these loaves and fish and break them up for these people to eat of". I saw the face of the man named Peter. He looked like the man with the eyes of peace was maybe a bit looney. Like he had said something that just couldn't be done. Nevertheless they began to break the fish and loaves and pass the pieces out.

After a long while the man said, "Now let us not waste anything and collect the scraps". Again that man called Peter was stupified!  He looked around at all the people and shook his head in amazement again. Not believing that there could be one scrap left. But he said, "OK lets collect all the scraps". Scraps began to come in and in just a short time my basket was full of scraps, all the way to the top! and Peter said, "We need another basket!" and a basket came from nowhere and it began to be filled. Now all the people there were really stupified! As another basket was needed as the scraps kept coming in. The men with him couldn't keep up with the scraps coming in finally the last scrap came in. There were 12 baskets in the circle, All filled to the top with scraps! People were staring at those baskets, some just shook their heads not believing what they had just seen. Then the man got up and picked up my basket and walked over to me and gave me back my basket. All of a sudden I got this thought. I AM LATE!! He smiled at me again and I got up, picked up my basket and ran down the hill to my home. I knew mom would be worried and ran as fast as I could.

When I got to within ear shot of the house I began to yell, "MOM! Mom! You Should have seen this man with this beard and eyes of peace! .. He did this awesome thing!!! MOM MOM!" She came to door with a look of worry on her face and as she saw me she had the biggest smile... and I reached her and told her. "MOM, this man with incredible eyes of peace looked at me and I followed him up the hill. He said so many wonderful things and then he took our basket of bread and fish and fed thousands of people. And then he gave me back our basket and it was full of these scraps and I handed the basket over to her. But.... then to my amazement as she reached for the basket I saw what was in it. It full of loaves of bread, and fish ... whole loaves of bread and whole fish!!!  Amen

That was in 1985. It was not until 11/19/91 that I truly came to the Lord. I had not read the scriptures or the New Testament in its entirely. I did not know the scriptures of The Lord's Ministry. But years later in studying the Gospels I saw that each of the 4 gospels had something about that episode.

Combine them all together and you have the dream that I had some 6 years before I accepted the Lord.

So when I read or hear about the Feeding of the 5000 I can relate to the awesome event as in the Dream I was THAT BOY!. How did he get there? Why was he alone? How come he had the basket and not his mom? And yes the biggee.. what the heck was a boy alone doing in the midst of 5000 + people? I would have been going the other way in souped up Mustang!

You all have a great day in Our Lord.... Ain't He Good?

James Banfield