Daily Bread
Sometimes we pray the Lord’s Prayer so often, the words roll past us without sinking in. Right there in the middle of it, Jesus teaches tells us to pray for a daily portion.
“Give us this day our daily bread.” (Matt. 6:11)
Not weekly bread, not a lifetime supply; daily bread. Why would Jesus teach us to pray that way? Because daily bread teaches daily dependence. In the wilderness, God gave manna to His people one day at a time, not because He couldn’t provide more, but because He wanted their hearts to trust Him again. Tomorrow, the next day, and the next. “Give us this day our daily bread” is not just a prayer about food; it’s a prayer of trust.
Lord, give me what I need for today, strength for today, peace for today, patience for today, faith for today. Some of us struggle with this, because when provision doesn’t look the way we expected, it can feel like heaven has gone quiet. It can feel like maybe God has forgotten the recipe, like maybe the oven went cold, but God has not forgotten. He has not lost the recipe and He has never once failed to provide what His children truly need. Sometimes He provides courage instead of comfort. Sometimes He provides endurance instead of escape. Sometimes He provides enough light for the next step, not the whole road.
Daily bread means trusting that God is already working on tomorrow while we walk in today.
And sometimes our part is simply to bring Him the ingredients — our prayers, our obedience, our willingness, our faith, even when it feels small. We bring what we have, and He does what only He can do. He takes what seems ordinary, what seems insufficient, and in His hands it becomes enough.
I was reminded of this recently when I caught myself worrying about things that haven’t even happened yet; decisions down the road, problems that might come, needs I can’t solve today. And in the middle of all that noise, I was reminded of this simple prayer: “Give us this day our daily bread.” God wasn’t asking me to have faith for the whole year; He was asking me to trust Him for this day. When I stopped and looked around, I realized He had already provided the strength to get up, people who care, work to do, and peace in moments I didn’t earn. It may not have been everything I wanted, but it was exactly what I needed.
So if you feel like you’re running low, low on hope, low on strength, low on answers; don’t be afraid to pray a simple prayer: “God, just give me today’s bread,” and then trust Him to be faithful again tomorrow.
“And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life?” Matt. 6:27