Give Us This Day

Jesus gave His disciples a prayer. Not so they would recite it mindlessly, but so they would learn how to pray. He says, “So then, this is how you should pray.” Every line of the Lord’s Prayer is a lesson in how to come to God. This morning I want to sit on the middle line. “Give us this day our daily bread.”

But first, notice what comes before it. “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Jesus starts with God. His name. His kingdom. His will. Only after that do we get to bread. That order is not an accident. When God is in His right place in your heart, your needs fall into their right place too.

Now the request itself. Give us this day. Not this year. Not this month. This day. It is a morning prayer. It sounds a lot like the manna in the wilderness, enough for today, gathered fresh. Jesus is teaching you to come back to the Father every day and ask again.

The word translated daily is a bit of a puzzle. It shows up in this prayer and almost nowhere else in ancient Greek, so scholars are not completely sure of its shade of meaning. It might mean bread for today, bread for tomorrow, or simply the bread we need. Any of those readings points the same direction. You are asking your Father for what you need, one day at a time.

And notice it is bread. Not cake. Not a feast. Jesus is teaching us to ask for what we need, not everything we want. There is freedom in that. You do not have to carry the weight of your whole future this morning. You just have to ask for today. Paul says, “And my God will supply all your needs according to His glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” All your needs. Not all your wishes. He knows the difference better than you do.

Also notice it is our bread, not my bread. Jesus teaches us to pray as part of a family. When you pray this, you are praying for the single mom at your church, the guy sleeping in his car, the missionary family overseas. Asking for our daily bread should make you more generous with yours.

Then right after bread comes forgiveness. “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.” Jesus puts them side by side. You need forgiveness as much as you need food. Every single day. And here is the gospel: the Father who feeds you is the same Father who forgives you, and He forgives you because Jesus paid your debt in full on the cross. Jesus called Himself the bread of life. He is the bread you need most.

So here is a simple challenge for your mornings. Pray this prayer slowly. Do not rush it. Stop at each line and make it personal. Hallow His name. Ask for His kingdom in your home and at your job. Ask for today’s bread, and name what you need. Ask for forgiveness, and forgive the person who wronged you. Ask Him to keep you from temptation. Then get up from your chair and trust Him with the day.

Your Father knows what you need before you ask. He wants you to ask anyway. Not because He needs information, but because He wants you to know where your bread comes from.