Living 4 Him

“The Lord will guide you continually.  The Lord will satisfy your needs in a dry and weary land.”  Isaiah 58:11

Our human lives require basic needs to fulfill; food, water, air, rest, along with additional needs for bringing a comfortable flair to living. How those needs are met can come in various forms, but the responsibility falls to us as humans. So we create routines and deal with surprises. We scribble to-do lists aware there are unknowns.  We strive to tackle demands alone or through community.  Like a puzzle that is never quite finished, these parts occupy our day-to-day lives and often clog our minds.   But God sees our needs from a completely different perspective, and the good news is that all of it matters to God.

In the third line of the Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6:11)  Jesus says, “Give us this day our daily bread.” With these words, Jesus presents a window into God’s heart. He is a God who provides, ready and willing to help with whatever may be in front of us. No wish is too small, no idea is too crazy; we can ask him ANYTHING.

This personal prayer starts with the word “GIVE,” implying that God is an active God, handing us the right thing at the right moment.  The God we worship and love is generous.  He celebrates with great joy anytime he can give to his children!

Jesus directs our attention to current needs with the words “THIS DAY.”  At the end of Matthew 6 he reminds us not to worry about tomorrow, but to focus on today.  While it is perfectly fine to pray for future events, our minds tend to run ahead of God and we miss his active, abiding presence in our daily lives. When we pray for immediate challenges our perspective centers on God in the present moment, feeding us strength for each moment; the One “able to accomplish what concerns me today.”  (He is Able, lyrics by Greg Ferguson and Rory Noland)

Trusting the present moment to God brings peace. There is no reason to fear upcoming days; God will give us our daily bread on those days, too.

When Jesus used the word “BREAD” was he only talking about food?  Probably not, especially since he described himself as the Bread of Life and through him we receive healing for our souls.  Bread represents not only the physical fuel we consume to energize our bodies, but it also represents the body of Jesus, alive in us, providing sustenance that goes beyond the physical to the emotional needs of the mind, the spiritual needs of the heart, the entire needs of the soul. 

Richard Foster sums this concept up nicely for us . . .

Jesus invited us to pray for daily bread.  In doing so, He has transfigured the trivialities of daily life.  Try to imagine what our prayer experience would be like if He had forbidden us to ask for the little things.  What if the only things we were allowed to talk about were the weighty matters, the important things, the profound issues?  We would be orphaned in the cosmos, cold and terribly alone.  But the opposite is true; He welcomes us with our 1,001 trifles, for they are each important to him.

In a nutshell, God cares!  He desires a relationship with us that includes every part of our day.  The bits and pieces of life may seem meaningless or bothersome until we share them with God. Let’s take the invitation from Jesus to pray for daily bread and find nourishment for our bodies and our souls.

Reaching in (allowing God’s word to work in your life): Read John 6:25-59 in which Jesus describes himself as the Bread of Life.  What sustenance can you find for your soul? 

Reaching out (taking God’s Word into the world): Take time each day to bring your daily needs before God.  Then, take his hand as he walks you through each one.