This week the lectionary includes the story of Jacob wrestling with God and losing (yet also winning). This is paired with Jesus feeding the five thousand, a text many have wrestled with. Explanations of this miracle abound, ranging from ‘pure’ miracle to the miracle of sharing as others contributed to the needs of others. What is important is no so much the way in which the miracle occurs, but what it symbolises. Here we see generosity unbound and the great crowd in a deserted placed is provided for. God’s surprising grace shows up again in the most unlikely of places. This is the character of Jesus’ ministry and life. He shows up, announces the Kingdom of God, and then it quickly appears in both spiritual and physical ways. This is the real miracle of the Gospel.