Verse-a-day 20 May 2013

The Lord's Prayer (5)

Quintus Heine

Matthew 6:11 "Give us today our daily bread."

In the last three petitions in the Lord's Prayer were mainly about God, the next three petitions about our needs. Having sought the glory of God, his holiness, and his will, we can boldly pray for our own needs. Andrew Murray says: "Once believers have made themselves obedient to God in the first three petitions, they have the wonderful freedom to ask God to meet their temporal needs."

What the concept of "daily bread" means is our basic needs. This is not just about food, but all our basic needs. The idea of bread does not reflect an abundance, but a necessity. Here, we pray for God's provision, care and conservation. Someone once said that by praying this basic prayer, the Lord teaches us to be released from our propensity for greed and avarice. With it, we pray to be satisfied with what God gives us, and to adjust our lifestyles accordingly. It is not wrong to have ambition, but in our quest for more we often forget to be grateful and happy with what we have. With this prayer, we pray that God will take care of us.

The prayer for our daily bread is also a recognition of our dependence on God. We become so self-sufficient that we easily forget that what we need to exist is in God's hands. We take the provision of our daily needs for granted and forget that "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above" (James 1:17). Everything you have, whether it’s a little or a lot, comes from God. We should never forget that!

The "we" means that we should get involved with our brothers and sisters who are suffering. We are the hands and feet of God. We must live out this prayer and, as children of God, get involved in the troubles of society and help to meet people's basic needs where we can.

Yes, thank you, Lord, that we may boldly ask our basic needs of you. Make us grateful for what we have. Help us to help provide for the basic needs of our brothers and sisters who have less than we do.

Prayer: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and for ever. Amen.