Hank Smith: 00:04 Hello my friends. Welcome to another Follow Him Favorites. My name is Hank Smith. I’m here with the wonderful John Bytheway. Welcome. Wonderful John Bytheway.

John Bytheway: 00:12 I am always wondering something that’s true.

Hank Smith: 00:15 We are taking a section of this week’s Come, Follow Me lesson to talk about it briefly. This week, John, our question is, what do you do when you feel insignificant or small? It comes from John chapter six, where the Lord has asked Philip and Andrew, hey, how are we going to feed these people, all these thousands of people, and Andrew’s stealing someone’s lunch here and says, I found a boy who has five barley loaves and two small fishes. And then he asks this question, but what are they among so many? What are they among so many? What do you do when you feel that way? You’re just small and you’ve got these huge things that we want to do. We want to feed these thousands and thousands of people, but you don’t feel like you’re enough. What do you do?

John Bytheway: 00:59 Well, this is the right chapter to look at that it, and it’s like the Lord, what have you got? Well, give me what you’ve got and I will multiply it to a degree you won’t even believe until at the end they’re taking up the extra, which is a fun part of this story. Have 12 baskets full of the leftovers. So I think there’s a beautiful way to apply that is that the Lord will never run out of his ability to help you, I think is the way Elder Holland said it. And just bring what you have. Recently, President Nelson quoted President Ezra Taft Benson, who said a long time ago that men and women who turn their lives over to God can make a lot more out of their lives than they can. And then he went on with this list of all the things he can do, and that just sounds like somebody going, what have I got among all these needs? And the Lord says, I can do that. Just give your life to me, I can make more out of you than you could by yourself.

Hank Smith: 01:57 Absolutely. Whether it be maybe you get a calling and you don’t feel like you’re adequate or you’re a brand new missionary and you don’t feel like you can measure up. Maybe you look at the church. We have our 16 million members among billions of people. Lord, what are they among so many? And the answer comes in the next few verses. The Lord basically said, give me what you have. He gives thanks for it. And it’s way more than enough. There’s 12 baskets which remained over and above what they had eaten. So I think John’s answer here is, once you bring what you have to the Lord and keep his commandments, try to live his gospel, he’ll make you more than enough. You’ll see that you can do it, and then some.

John Bytheway: 02:40 And maybe that’s how we use that word, magnify. Sometimes the Lord will magnify you. He’ll make you bigger than you think you are, and you’ll be able to do more. I love that you pointed out that Hank, verse 11, he gave thanks. Not only do you bring what you have, this is all I’ve got, but I’m thankful for that. But can you magnify me? And maybe that’s another echo of that whole idea of I’ll make weak things strong.

Hank Smith: 03:06 Become strong. It reminds me of the brother of Jared saying, here’s the stones, this is my idea, here’s what I have. And the Lord says, I can make that work.

John Bytheway: 03:15 I can fill it with light. Yeah.

Hank Smith: 03:18 I can use you, what you’ve given me, and make it enough. So anybody listening out there, go to the Lord and he’ll make you more than enough for any obstacle, any difficulty that you face.

John Bytheway: 03:30 Hank, this reminds me of something that Elder Neal A. Maxwell said years ago, and I might get it close to right, but God does not begin by asking about our ability, but only our availability. And then when we prove our dependability, he will increase our capability. Something like that. So that was that idea. I’m willing to try. I’ll bring what I have, I’m willing to try and God will magnify and increase you.

Hank Smith: 03:55 Beautiful. I love that question. What are they among so many? Well, more than enough. We hope you’ll join us on our full podcast. It’s called Follow Him. You can get it wherever you get your podcast and then come back next week and join us here for another Follow Him Favorites.