“DID YOU LACK ANYTHING?”
Luke 22:35
Jesus’ disciples had been sent out with nothing. No staff. No bag. No bread. No money. They didn’t even have an extra change of clothes or a hotel reservation. They were men on a mission, walking by faith.
Jesus often sends us out with less than we’d expect. We’re asked to move forward without the full picture. We receive an assignment we feel inadequate to fulfill. We’re called to start when we’re not yet ready. This is often how God works.
Jesus’ ways are higher than ours. He can feed a crowd of 5,000 with one boy’s lunch. He can replenish the wedding wine with Galilean tap water. Jesus knows that the greatest threats to a life of fruitfulness are delay and distraction. We would wait until our bank accounts were full. We would hesitate until every question was answered. We would want a five-year plan in hand. Like Gideon, we want 30,000 soldiers with us, but God says 300 is enough.
Instead, Jesus enrolls his disciples in the school of faith. The twelve were learning to trust God’s provision day after day. Instead of focusing on their own needs, they were called to look out to a needy world. It took tremendous trust. That was the point.
The apostle Paul would later join the second class of this school. His courses were on how to be brought low and how to abound, facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. The secret of being content is only learned through experience. Paul found that in his lowest seasons, when hunger and need were his portion, God was still there. Thus, he boldly declares, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13)
What about you, believer? Are you in this same school? If you don’t have what you think you need right now, it may be that heaven has enrolled you. Your energy is depleted. Your resources are thin. Your next steps are hard to discern. You’re not in trouble; you’re in training. You’ve been called to tremendous trust. Your job is not to strategize your way out. Instead, it’s to see him who is invisible and seek first his kingdom.
Give yourself to the assignment God has put right in front of you. Take captive your doubts and fears. They are a tactic of your enemy. Throw off self-reliance and become a little child again. Will you Father fail to hear your cry? Is he not of good character and timely provision?
When Jesus’ disciples returned from preaching the gospel and healing everywhere, he asked them, “When I sent you out with no moneybag or knapsack or sandals, did you lack anything?” They said, “Nothing.”
Neither will you lack, son or daughter of God. There is no higher position in the universe than to be God’s beloved child. Neither angels nor kings are so exalted. We may be weak and poor, but our Savior is rich and generous. We may doubt and worry, but Jesus never does. The resources of heaven move at his command and the children of God will always have their Father’s provision.
© John Rinehart 2026