Give Us Our Daily Bread

Jesus teaches us to ask our heavenly Father for our daily bread. This simple prayer reminds us that God cares about our everyday needs. He cares not only about our souls and eternal life, but also about the ordinary things we need each day.

We see this throughout the Bible. During Israel’s journey through the wilderness, God gave His people food day after day. During a drought, He provided food for Elijah in an unusual way. And I believe many of us could tell our own stories about times when God provided for us or opened a way when we did not know what would happen next.

But we may wonder how important this prayer is today. In Jesus’ time, having enough bread was a serious concern. Today, most of us can walk into a supermarket or restaurant and find more food than we need. Just think about this: here in New Jersey alone, there are somewhere around 25,000 to 30,000 restaurants. For most of us, the question is not, “Will I have something to eat today?” but, “What do I feel like eating today?” So why should we still pray, “Give us this day our daily bread”?

Because Jesus is talking about much more than bread. Martin Luther explained that “daily bread” includes everything we need for everyday life: food and drink, clothing and a home, family, work, peace, health, good friends, faithful neighbors, and many other blessings. When we ask for our daily bread, we are placing our everyday lives into God’s hands.

And that is good news. We do not have to come to God only with our biggest problems. We can pray about our work, our family, our health, our bills, our decisions, our worries, and the people we love. If something matters to us, we can bring it to God.

But someone may ask, “Why should I ask God for these things? Shouldn’t I work for what I need?” Of course we should. The Bible speaks clearly about the importance of work. Even the commandment about the Sabbath says, “Six days you shall labor.” Faith does not mean waiting for God to do everything. We are called to work, plan, and be responsible.

So why do we still pray, “Give us our daily bread”? Because we cannot control everything. I can work hard, but I need the health and strength to work. I can make plans, but I need opportunities. A farmer can plant the seed, but he cannot command the rain. We do our part, but much of life is simply not in our hands.

Asking God for our daily bread, then, is not a sign of weakness. It is a sign of trust. We recognize that our abilities, our opportunities, our health, and so many things we enjoy are gifts from God.

And this trust can give us great peace. There are times when we feel we are running out—not only of money, but of strength, patience, courage, or hope. We wonder, “How am I going to get through tomorrow?” Faith reminds us that we do not have to depend only on ourselves. We have a heavenly Father to whom we can turn.

There is something freeing about living this way. I do not have to carry everything by myself. I can place myself, my family, my work, my worries, and my future into God’s hands.

And maybe that is why Jesus teaches us to pray for our daily bread. He does not tell us to ask today for everything we will need for the next twenty years. He teaches us to trust God one day at a time. Bread for today. Strength for today. Grace for today. And tomorrow, we come to Him again.

So let us work faithfully, be grateful, and be willing to share from what we receive from God, and trust God one day at a time. And when tomorrow seems uncertain, let us remember: the God who cared for us yesterday and gave us what we needed today will still be our Father tomorrow. Amen.