“Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns. When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.”
— Matthew 14:13–14
Through the Bible: Matthew 14, Mark 6, Luke 9
Matthew 14 begins with the death of John the Baptist — Jesus’ cousin, forerunner, and friend. John was, arguably, the one person on earth with whom Jesus felt the deepest kinship.
So when Jesus learns that he has been killed, “He withdrew from there in a boat to a desolate place by Himself.”
As an introvert, I really wish that was the subject heading in my Bible: “Jesus Withdraws by Himself.”
Instead, it says, “Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand.”
And that’s pretty much what ministry is like, isn’t it? People are still hungry. People are still needy. The needs don’t pause when the shepherd is tired.
Matthew 14 becomes, in that sense, a case study in ministering through fatigue.
Retreat and Return
Jesus withdrew to a quiet place. Later in the chapter, He feeds the five thousand. But now He nourishes His own soul. Later in the chapter He will walk among the waves. But now, He craves the still waters.
For anyone who ministers — pastors, teachers, volunteers, parents — this is a passage that both comforts and convicts. There are days when you feel like you’re pouring water from an empty bucket, or driving in circles around the gas pump calling out, “Fill me up!” without ever stopping the car.
But even the Son needed solitude. Throughout the Gospels, we see this rhythm of retreat and return.
- He rose early in the morning while it was still dark to pray (Mark 1:35).
- He slipped away to desolate places (Luke 5:16).
- He went up on the mountain and prayed through the night before choosing the Twelve (Luke 6:12).
- He withdrew after miracles (Matthew 14:23)
- He withdrew before His His suffering (Luke 22:41).
Compassion Throigh Exhaustion
Before Jesus even had time to pull out His prayer journal, the crowds were already on Him. Thousands of needy faces, hundreds of outstretched hands. And Scripture says, “He had compassion on them.”
That word, splagchnizomai, means to be moved in the deepest part of your being (fun fact: our word spleen is derived from this word) Jesus didn’t just feel sorry for them; He felt their hunger in His gut. Out of His exhaustion, compassion still rose.
Jesus shows us that compassion can coexist with fatigue. He didn’t ignore His need for rest; He simply refused to let His weariness harden into apathy. And later, after the crowds were fed, He did withdraw again — up on the mountain, alone with His Father (Matthew 14:23).
Be Filled, Pour Out, Repeat
That’s the pattern we need. Pour yourself out when God moves you, but then stop the car. Pull over. Let Him fill you again. Even Jesus — the Good Shepherd Himself — made time to be shepherded.
So in this Pastor Appreciation Month, pray for the ones who keep pouring. Encourage them to rest. And if you are one of them, remember this:
The Shepherd who once fed five thousand is ready to feed you. The one who “saw… and had compassion” sees you, and has compassion on you.
Rest in that.
Related Content for this Day
- Day 290: The Cross (A Poem based on Luke 9:23)
- Day 290: Was Peter Faithful or Faithless? (Matthew 14:21-32)
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