The End Piece of Bread: When You Feel Used Up, God Still Has a Purpose for You

As I stand in the kitchen making sandwiches for my children, I reach down to the bottom of the bread bag to find the end piece of the bread loaf lying there by itself. The whole loaf had been eaten and that is all I had left for myself for a sandwich. This was fine because I wasn’t really hungry. It was at that moment when I thought to myself, “God I feel like this end piece of bread. It’s not necessarily the most favorite part of the loaf, as a matter of fact some people cut off the crust of the bread loaf entirely. God I’m just burnt out and used up.” It was at this moment that the Lord spoke to my heart, “That end piece of bread might just be the Bread of Life to someone else.”

Let me tell y’all something… There were literal tears instantly flowing down my cheek. Because sometimes you don't realize just how tired you are until God speaks directly into the place where you've been hurting. It had been so long since I’d heard the word of God given specifically for me in my circumstances. I’m always giving words of encouragement to others but rarely do those words come back to me to fill my cup.

Being overlooked by people does not mean you are overlooked by God!

Feeling empty does not mean you are finished. Feeling used up does not mean you are useless. And being in a season of change does not mean God has forgotten the plans He has for your life.

The Part Nobody Wants

Isn't it interesting how we sometimes treat the parts of our lives that we don't think are valuable? We want the beautiful parts. We want the fresh beginning. We want the answered prayer. We want the full loaf. But what happens when we find ourselves at the end?

At the end of our energy.

At the end of our patience.

At the end of our resources.

At the end of a season.

Sometimes we begin to believe that being at the end means we have nothing left to offer. God has a way of taking the very thing we have dismissed and reminding us that He still has a purpose for it. That end piece of bread may not have been my favorite piece. It may not have looked like much. It may have been the piece someone else would have thrown away. But it was still bread. And God used that simple piece of bread to feed me something much more important than a sandwich.

He fed my spirit with hope.

Hope for the Future

In Jeremiah 29:11, God the creator of the universe himself said, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Think about those words.

“For I know…”

God didn't say, You know.

He said, “I know.”

There are seasons when I don't know and this produces all kinds of anxiety within me. I say to myself, “I don't know what is next. I don't know how everything is going to work out. I don't know why certain things had to change. I don't know why some doors closed while others haven't opened yet. I don't know what God is doing behind the scenes.” But what we can rest assured is that God Knows and he is For Us. Amen!

Sometimes faith means being willing to trust the One who knows when we don't.

There Is Still Something to Give

One of the greatest lies we can believe when we are tired is that “I have nothing left to give.” Perhaps you don't have what you once had: the same energy, the same resources. Perhaps your circumstances have changed. That doesn't mean God is finished with you!

God isn't asking us to give to Him what we don't have. He's simply asking us to come, sit and listen at the feet of Jesus to the Word of God, the Bible. So many times we put aside our need for spiritual refreshment through the Word of God that we deplete ourselves in doing so and then wonder why we feel the way we do: broken and abandoned. It was never God who left us but it was us who left God. But God the Father is a loving and forgiving God that seeks only for a pure relationship with his children. Human relationships are not perfect and some can be down right messy. However, God is not like this. He is the perfect Father who longs for your commitment to the Body of Christ. You may say like I did, “I feel like this end piece of Bread God.” And his answer to this is:

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” -Matthew 11:28-29.

A widow had only a little oil.

A boy had five loaves and two fishes.

Moses had a staff.

David had a sling.

And that little end piece of bread reminded me that God has always been able to use what looks insignificant in human hands.

We don't have to be the biggest.

We don't have to be the strongest.

We don't have to be the most talented.

We don't have to have everything figured out.

We simply have to be willing to place what we have in God's hands.

God Bless,

Comfort Studio