2026-08-02 - _From complaining about what we lack to thanking God for what we have Author: Fr. Camillus Nwaigwe
2nd of August 2026
18th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year A
Isa 55:1-3
Rom 8:35,37-3
Mt 14,13-21
A man who was blind sat every day by a busy roadside with a sign that read: "I am blind. Please help me." Many people walked past him. A few dropped some coins into his bowl, but most simply continued on their way.
One day, a passerby stopped. He greeted the blind man, picked up the sign, and rewrote the message. Instead of "I am blind. Please help me," he wrote, "Today is a beautiful, bright day, but I cannot see it."
He placed the sign back beside the man and walked away.
Within a short time, the sound of coins dropping into the bowl became constant. Many more people stopped to give. By evening, the blind man had received far more than he usually did.
When the passerby returned, the blind man asked, "What did you write on my sign?"
The man replied, "I said the same thing, but in a different way. Your sign spoke about what you lacked. Mine reminded people of what they had and inspired gratitude."
The lesson is simple: our perspective changes everything. The blind man's first sign focused on deprivation; the second awakened thanksgiving.
From the *Gospel* of today, it would have been easy for the disciples to complain. They saw a large crowd, a remote place, and only five loaves and two fish. Their conclusion was logical: "We do not have enough." Their instinct was to send the people away. Jesus, however, refused to let scarcity dictate their response. Instead, He said, "Give them something to eat yourselves." Then He took the little they had, blessed it, broke it, and fed thousands.
How often do we resemble the disciples? We complain about what we lack: not enough money, not enough opportunities, not enough time, not enough support, not enough strength. In Nigeria today, where many families struggle with rising costs of living, unemployment, and insecurity, it is easy to focus on what is missing. Constant complaints can become the language of our hearts.
The *First Reading* offers a different perspective. Through the prophet Isaiah, God invites us: "Come to the waters... come without money and without price." God's blessings are not limited by our poverty or circumstances. He asks us to trust His generosity rather than our calculations.
Jesus teaches us that thanksgiving often comes before the miracle. Before multiplying the loaves, He first looked up to heaven and gave thanks. He did not complain that there were only five loaves and two fish. He thanked the Father for what was available. Gratitude opened the door for God's abundance.
This does not mean we ignore our problems or pretend they do not exist. Rather, it means we stop allowing our problems to define our faith. Instead of dwelling on what we do not have, we begin to thank God for what we do have: life, faith, family, health, talents, and the opportunities He still places before us. A grateful heart sees possibilities where a complaining heart sees only obstacles.
There is another angle to this miracle projected by some contemporary scientifically minded biblical scholars. They suggest that perhaps many people in the crowd had brought food with them, as was common for travellers, but, out of fear or selfishness, they kept it hidden. According to this view, the real miracle was that Jesus' words and example moved people to open their hearts, bring out what they had, and begin to share with one another. In that sense, the miracle was the transformation of selfish hearts into generous hearts. Whether or not one accepts this interpretation as explaining the event, it reminds us of an important truth: every genuine encounter with Christ should make us less selfish and more generous. The Church, however, has always professed that the Gospel presents this as a true miracle of Christ's divine power: Jesus truly multiplied the five loaves and two fish to feed the multitude. Yet the miracle does not end with the multiplication of bread. It also reaches into human hearts.
Then St. Paul in the *Second Reading* reminds us that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. If God's love remains with us even in hardship, then we always have a reason to hope and to give thanks.
Today, let us replace habitual complaining with grateful trust. When we place our little into Christ's hands and thank Him for it, He has a way of making it enough, not only for us but also for others. A thankful heart is often the beginning of God's greatest miracles.
Happy Sunday and God bless you
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