Noman had occasion recently, as he has on several occasions over the years, to recount a homily he once heard about the so-called miracle of the loaves and the fishes. (The gospels actually recount two separate such miracles.) The miracle, said Dr. Eduardo Ulloa, should be referred to rather as the miracles of the loaves and fishes, because Jesus performed a different miracle every time his disciples reached into the bags for a new fish and loaf.
He could have arranged matters by creating a mountain of fish and another of loaves so that everyone in the hungry crowd could see that there was plenty for everyone. He didn't. Instead he mediated his miracles through the 5,000 (7,000) acts of faith it took to keep reaching into the bag, and equal number it took for people in the crowd to hope and wait for the impossible.
That's the way Jesus works in life, especially in matters of money and capital. He gives us what we need when we need it, not when we want to see it. He asks for our cooperation through repeated acts of practical faith. We must have a plan (e.g., to reach into the bag) and execute it. He does the rest.
He also asks for our gratitude, which is why it's good to develop that virtue with people on earth. Then, we'll have the proper character dispositions towards our Father in heaven.
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