Xanthe Hancox

What we have received is not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may understand what God has freely given us. ... The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.  1 Corinthians 2:12

The hymn, "Break Thou the Bread of Life," came out of the Chautauqua Movement of the late 1800s in America. Chautauqua started out as a summer training programme for Sunday school teachers but quickly expanded to a sort of summer university where people would gather under big tents to listen to lectures and be entertained.  Mary Lathbury was a poet who enjoyed visiting Chautauqua during the summer.  She was asked to write a hymn so she took her Bible down to the lake to find inspiration. There, she read the story of Jesus feeding the 5 000 and how Jesus then reveals himself as the bread that gives eternal life.

‘Break thou the bread of life’ is still a popular communion hymn; from the title it’s easy to see why. However, it is also a fitting accompaniment to Bible studies. Have a look at the third verse:

 O send Thy Spirit, Lord, now unto me,


That He may touch my eyes, and make me see:

Show me the truth concealed within Thy Word,

And in Thy Book revealed I see the Lord.

Scroll up and read today’s verse from 1 Corinthians again. This hymn is a wonderful prayer for asking the Holy Spirit to illuminate our minds as we read and study the Scriptures.

Have you ever tried to share a passage of Scripture with a non-Christian friend and found that they simply didn’t get it? Maybe you can remember reading the Bible before you became a Christian and finding it dull and confusing.

Then you became a Christian, you received the Spirit, and the book came alive. Things that you once had puzzled over became clear, and you found yourself fascinated by it. This morning, let this old hymn be a reminder to always ask the Holy Spirit to reveal God’s truth to us when we approach his Word.

Prayer: Lord, thank you that you have revealed to us through your Spirit profound truths that we could never discover in our wisdom and arrogance. I ask that you would continue to teach me as I read your Word. Amen

Listen here to Break thou the bread of Life: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OzVlE8b8C5c