Daily Bread, and our daily prayers
Trusting God for Daily Bread - What counts as a 'need'?
Someone once said,
“If God answered prayer, I’d have a lot more parking spaces!”
Watch the video or scroll down to read the article it was based on :-)
A good ask
I wonder what is the most down-to-earth thing you have asked God for. Do you ask God to help you find parking spaces? Is that an appropriate kind of prayer?
In Luke 11, we find the disciples asking Jesus how to pray, and of all their questions, this has to be one of the better ones. I mean, the disciples did ask some crazy things! Remember the time James and John asked to be seated at his left and right in the kingdom? An interesting request, indeed.
This request in Luke 11 was a good one.
Unlike many of Jesus’ answers, he actually gave them a direct response rather than some parable that seemed unrelated to the question! Jesus must really have liked what they were asking because he answered so clearly and literally.
We call Jesus’ answer "The Lord’s Prayer," and it's probably the most famous Christian prayer in all the world. The Bible doesn't call it "The Lord’s Prayer," and some have argued that it should really be called "The Disciple’s Prayer." After all, it couldn’t be the Lord’s Prayer as Jesus could not have prayed it – he was sinless, and the prayer contains a request for forgiveness!
Matthew records this prayer in more detail than Luke, but both versions include the important teaching to ask for daily bread.
“Give us each day our daily bread.” — Luke 11:3
So, let’s break that one request down into two parts: ask daily and ask for bread.
1: Ask Daily
You could argue that a one-off prayer for daily bread for the rest of your life should cover it: "Dear God, please provide me with my daily needs for the next 365 days. There. Done." But this is not the essence of this prayer as laid out by Jesus. God yearns for us to have an ongoing, daily relationship with him, and our daily needs are one of the best ways for him to get our attention.
I believe the command to ask for daily needs, each day, is also God’s way of helping us not to worry about tomorrow. In Matthew 6:34, Jesus says,
“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” — Matthew 6:34
When we discipline ourselves to only ask for daily bread, rather than storing up treasures due to fear of an unknown future, we are trusting God with tomorrow. This brings us into a beautiful place of Christian mindfulness, where we are in the moment and mindful of God’s presence with us today, as well as in the future. When we acknowledge that Jesus is correct when he says that each day has enough trouble of its own, we are actually humbling ourselves, saying that we cannot bear the burden of tomorrow if we are to navigate today correctly. As soon as we start thinking about tomorrow’s worries, we are living in the future rather than being in the present. And about 80% of the things we worry about in the future never happen anyway.
Can we just focus on trusting God for our daily 'today' needs?
More to the point, can we trust God enough not to worry about tomorrow’s needs?
These questions remind me of the time God’s people were in the desert and he had to feed them by providing manna every day. If they collected more manna than was required, storing it up for the next day, they woke up to the horrible sight and stinky smell of maggots in the bread (Exodus 16:20). And guess what? There was fresh manna out in the desert waiting for them that wasn’t there the day before.
Trust God that as he provides for you today, he will also provide for you tomorrow with blessings that are not yet visible.
Back to Jesus’ prayer, let’s now think about why he tells his disciples—you and me—to ask for daily bread, rather than daily steak, or daily caviar.
2: Ask for Bread
Bread symbolizes the basic needs in life, sustenance to continue on in life’s journey.
In ancient Israel, bread was not merely a food item; it was the staple of the diet. The Hebrew word for "bread" (lehem) was often used synonymously with "food" in general. To "eat bread" simply meant "to eat." It provided the majority of calories and energy needed for survival.
In the desert, God provided plenty of bread every day. And when they got bored of it, he provided quail! At its simplest, Jesus is telling us to ask for what we need.
But what constitutes a need?
This question has caused many of us to go without, thinking that humility involves only asking for the bare minimum, not daring to do an ‘Oliver Twist’ and ask for more. But what if little Oliver was actually genuinely hungry? God is not like the manager in Oliver Twist! Yet, there is a danger that we Christians see ourselves as hungry boys in God’s workhouse, waiting for heaven where all will be well. In the meantime, we mustn’t insult the Master by asking for more than we need.
So what does constitute a need? What can we ask for? What should we ask for?
Andrea and I have discussed this over the years as we have been on our own journey of asking. And not asking.
We have heard good Christian believers say things like, ‘God will always give you what you need, but never more than that.’ If we take that thinking too far, do I need the picture on the wall in front of me? I could live without it. I could also live without the number of clothes I have. Perhaps I don’t really need coffee. I could live without that [gasps]!
So what do I need? Water, nutrition, clothes, and shelter. Is that all? If that’s all I should pray for, then I don’t really need much faith! I end up not asking for anything for myself, because I don’t think I really need that much. How did I get here? There are two reasons for not asking that may sound familiar:
Not asking because I don’t really believe God will provide. With this mindset, it is easier – and safer – just not to ask at all.
Not asking because I don’t believe it is a genuine need. This mindset is supported by the idea that by not asking, you are staying humble.
Both these reasons can come from a poor self-image (I don’t really deserve it) or a poor God-image (he’s not really that generous or loving). Both need correcting.
Deeper Needs of the Soul - Tasty Bread!
So far, I don’t feel I’ve answered the question of what our basic daily bread needs are. I’ve probably just complicated the question. Let’s go further. What about the need for love, art, beauty, things that provide for my mental well-being? I would argue those are needs too.
When our children were young, we were trying to educate them as to what foods were healthy, encouraging an appreciation of salad and healthy proteins. We explained that the body needs nutrition and not just filling up. Eventually, they began to ask, ‘Is this good for me?’ about different foods on offer. So when we were sharing out some chocolates and that same question came our way, Andrea answered, ‘Yes, it’s good for your happiness!’
Although we can all live without chocolate, there are some things that are simply needed at an emotional level for our mental health and well-being. And just as some people require a certain diet, or more calories because of their height or lifestyle, at the emotional level, each of us has different needs too. Andrea is very visual, so an ugly environment affects her more than it does me. So, one of her needs is to have beauty around her in order to be creative and happy. All of us need beauty, but in different measures and from different sources. She enjoys being by the sea, where I love a walk in the woods.
But do I need those things to survive? No, I could be put in prison where I have no access to chocolate or nature and survive. However, I have come to class those things as needs—daily bread. Why? Because my loving heavenly Father would agree that for me to be at my best, I need those things. For me to function in my full God-given potential, they are needs. If I don’t get outside often enough, I get groggy and cannot perform important tasks as well. So getting outside is a need.
Naturally, I could live off stale bread and water. But I don’t see God wanting that for me. If someone wants to just live off stale bread, I say, “Go fill your boots.” I’m praying for ciabatta!
One danger here is that we then take this point too far. ‘I need chocolate,’ you say, ‘to feed my soul.’ Or, ‘I need this comfort because life has treated me badly.’ We need to ask honestly before the Lord what constitutes daily bread for us, and believe in faith that he will bring comfort, healing, and happiness when we need it. After all, he is the ultimate bread, our bread of life.
Spiritual Bread
While primarily referring to physical needs in the Lord’s Prayer, "bread" also had spiritual implications within Jewish thought. The Torah, or God's word, was often referred to as spiritual food. This broader understanding would have resonated with Jesus' audience, especially later when Jesus declared himself to be the "Bread of Life" (John 6:35), signifying that he provides spiritual nourishment essential for eternal life, even greater than the manna; even more so when at the Last Supper he declared over the bread, ‘This is my body, broken for you.’
The daily bread we need most is Jesus. If we get our fill of him, those cheeky excuses that we need certain things that are really ungodly desires will fall away.
So what do you count as needs, and what are luxuries? Your answer will be different from someone else’s.
Think prayerfully about the following questions.
What do you daily rely on God for? There may be more than you think!
Are there any of tomorrow’s needs you have been asking God for that you should leave until tomorrow?
Honestly ask God what constitutes a need for you. Look for areas you may have claimed are needs but could have done without, e.g., that extra slice of pizza because you had a bad day. Look also for needs you have denied yourself of because you don’t really believe God would provide them or that you deserve them.