Tiberias

Tiberias was almost out the door when he heard his mother's voice and stopped. "And just where do you think you're going, young man?"

"Outside, mother, to play," said Tiberias.

"You were going down to the seashore, weren't you?" she said in a scolding tone.

"Yes, mother, but I'll be with Nathan. "Nathan was a fisherman in his late twenties with whom Ty had struck up a friendship. Ty wanted to someday be a fisherman like Nathan; mending nets, hauling fish to market, all the things that fishermen do.

Ty's mother towered over her nine-year-old. With her hands on her hips, she spoke sternly, but with compassion, "Tiberias, it's not that I don't want you to be with Nathan, but you mustn't sneak out to do it. You must always ask, so I will know where you are. Besides, you know your chores must be done before you can go down to the seashore."

"But mother," Ty pleaded, "I've done them."

"You've swept the entry?"

"Clean as a whistle."

"Did you fill the water pots?"

"To the tops."

"Did you beat the carpets"

"Both sides."

"Well, you still didn't ask permission to go down to the shore."

"Mother, please, please, please, may I go down to the shore to see Nathan? He should be coming in from fishing soon and I want to see his catch."

A hint of a smile crossed the face of Ty's mother. "Very well, then, but I want you home before dark. Before dark, do you understand?" She had not even finished her sentence before Ty was running down the sandy hill. She watched from her porch as the boy ran happily toward the Sea of Galilee. Then a thought occurred to her and she called after him, "Tiberias,. . . TIBERIAS."

The boy stopped and yelled back,"Yes, mother?"

"How many fishermen are there with Nathan?" she shouted.

"Three," yelled Ty with his hands cupped to his mouth.

"I'm sure they will be hungry. Why don't you take some bread to them for supper?"
That day Ty's mother had baked ten loaves of barley bread. They were small, but ten was more than she needed.

As Ty chugged back up the hill to his house, Ty's mother went inside to get the bread. She met Ty at the door. "Here are five loaves, three for Nathan's helpers, one for Nathan and here's one for you, too."

Ty smiled as he watched his mother wrap the small loaves of bread in a cloth and place them in a basket.

"Thank you, mother. These will be a great supper for Nathan and the crew." With the basket securely in hand, Ty took off for the shore once more.

When Ty reached the spot along the shore where Nathan usually pulled his boat ashore and unloaded his catch, Nathan was nowhere to be seen. Ty looked out across the Sea of Galilee. He spied several fishing boats, but none was Nathan's. Ty set the basket down and decided to wait for Nathan. While he was doodling in the sand, another young fisherman named Achim (Ah-KEEM) came by carrying a net of fish he had just caught.

"Good afternoon, Ty. Looking for Nathan?" asked Achim.

"Yes, I'm waiting for him," said Ty, "Have you seen him? He's usually back from fishing this time of day."

"I'm afraid you're going to have a long wait today. Nathan and the others are staying out on the sea tonight. They're trying a little night fishing," explained Achim.

"Are you sure?" asked Ty. "I brought them some of my mother's bread for supper."

"I'm sorry, Ty, but I talked to him this morning before he left and that's what he told me he was going to do. I know you're disappointed. I'll tell you what: Take your basket of bread and a couple of these fine perch I just caught to your mother and have a good supper tonight. Maybe invite some of your other friends, too."

Achim pulled out two pan-sized perch from the net and handed them to boy. Though Ty was disappointed about missing Nathan, he knew there would another time. Besides, those fish would make a great gift to his mother and maybe help her forget that Ty had tried to sneak out of the house.

"Thank you, Achim," Ty said gratefully.

"Think nothing of it," replied Achim and waved goodbye. Ty put the fish into his basket as Achim disappeared over a sand dune.

While Ty had been looking for Nathan's boat that afternoon, he had not noticed that he had wandered farther down the coast than ever before. It was getting late, but Ty lingered by the seashore that he loved so much.

After a while, Ty heard noises like a large crowd of people talking just over a rise in the sand. Curious, Ty made his way up the sandy hill until he saw a huge crowd of people. "There must be thousands of people down there!" thought Ty.

Ty watched the crowd of people for a while. Everyone sat in front of a bearded man in a white robe that sat on another hill. All of them were strangers to Ty. Finally, Ty's curiosity got the best of him and he decided to join the crowd and find out why they were gathered.

He started down the hillside to find a place to sit, when he remembered he had left the basket with the fish and the bread on the shore. He quickly ran back and got the basket and made his way back to where the crowd was seated.

Ty, standing in an open area between two rows of people, was looking for a place to sit down when he heard a voice behind him, "Excuse me, young man."

Ty looked around to find a young man following him. "Yes, sir?" asked Ty who was now afraid he was somewhere he shouldn't be.

"Excuse me," the young man said again, "my name is Andrew. What's your's?"

"My name is Tiberias,. . .I mean, ah, Ty," he stammered.

"Well, Ty, my master," and he pointed to the bearded man, "has asked me and my friends to find enough food to feed all these people. When I saw your basket, I wondered if perhaps you might have some food that you would share with us."

Ty thought to himself, "Mother gave me these loaves of bread to give to Nathan and the others, but they're not here; Achim gave me these fish as a gift, so I guess I can do what I want with them." After a moment, Ty spoke to Andrew, "All I have is five loaves of barley bread my mother made and a couple of perch a friend gave me a little while ago. I don't think they will even be enough for you and your friends, let alone this crowd, but if you want them you can have them."

Andrew patted Ty on the shoulder. "You have done a great thing, Ty. Come, I want to introduce you to may master." Andrew guided the young man through the crowd, up the hill towards the bearded man seated on a rock talking to another man.

"Excuse me Philip for interrupting, but I have someone here I would like to introduce to our master. Lord, this is Ty. He has donated his five loaves and two fish to feed these people," and Andrew held the basket high in the air. "Ty, this is Jesus of Nazareth."

Jesus smiled very broadly, stood up, and placed his hands on Ty's shoulders. While still holding Ty's shoulders, Jesus said to Andrew and Philip, "Have the people sit down on the grass in groups of fifties." Andrew took Ty to be seated with a large family that was seated near Jesus.

Soon, about a hundred smaller groups dotted the hillside. Jesus then took Ty's basket and reached inside. He took out the loaves of bread and in a loud voice said a prayer of thanks and blessed the bread. Then he put the loaves back in the basket. Next, Jesus pulled out the two perch and prayed again and blessed them, thanking God for providing the two little fish.

Ty was both proud and a little embarrassed. "What are two fish among so many?" Ty thought.

Then Jesus called Andrew, Philip, and several other helpers whose names Ty did not know, to the front to begin distributing the food to the crowd. The men lined up in front of Jesus to receive some bread and fish to give to the people. They raised the front of their tunics with their hands to form a carrying place for the food. Jesus dipped his hands into Ty's basket and began pulling out loaves of bread and fish that filled each person's tunic. One after another, bread and fish overflowed from the server's garments. There was so much food!

The men serving it were generously leaving large portions of bread and fish with each group of hungry people. Ty was amazed by what he saw happening. He also knew he would have to leave soon to get home before dark as his mother had told him to do.

Soon after the last people in the back had been served, Jesus instructed the men who had served the food to borrow empty baskets from some people in the crowd. Several who were travelling to Jerusalem for Passover offered theirs for use. They finally borrowed twelve empty baskets. Jesus then told the men to pass through the crowd and pick up all the uneaten and leftover food. To Ty's surprise, it took the twelve borrowed baskets to hold all the leftovers.

Ty sat nervously torn between his desire to leave for home and wanting to see what else might happen. Andrew came over bringing Ty's basket with him.
"You did a mighty thing today, Ty. " said Andrew. "God has blessed you. Because of your generosity and faithfulness, God was able to feed all of these people from your little basket."

Ty reached out to receive the basket. Curiously, he looked inside. There in the bottom were five barley loaves and two large perch. "Thank you," Ty said to Andrew, "but I must go or I'll be late getting home and my mother will be upset."

Andrew waved goodbye and watched Ty run down to the seashore towards home.

The sky was a beautiful mix of reds and purples when Ty walked into his house.

"It's a miracle!" said Ty's mother when she saw him come in.

Ty was so astonished at his mother's statement, he nearly dropped the basket of bread and fish. "How could she know about the miracle I just saw?" he thought to himself.

"It's a miracle!" she said again with a happy smile. "You're home before dark, just like you promised and I didn't even have to call you one time!"

Ty's eyes flashed and a big smile appeared on his face. "If you think that was a miracle, have I got a story to tell you!"

The End