The Lord’s Prayer: Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread

When the disciples heard Jesus ask for daily bread, they probably thought back on the familiar history of the Exodus; while the Israelites wandered through the wilderness, God miraculously met their physical needs with a daily shower of manna. Manna was wafer-like pieces of sweet bread that covered the ground every morning like fresh snow. Even though God gave them more than enough for each day, the extra couldn’t be saved.

God generously fed them constantly and consistently, but the people grumbled against his provision.

Did Jesus want them to pray for manna again, or did he mean something else?

A few weeks after Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, he performed another bread miracle: the feeding of 5,000 men plus wives and children in one day. There may have more than 20,000 fed on that single day. Jesus miraculously transformed 5 small loaves and 2 fish into a smorgasbord for a crowd that would overflow a high school football stadium.

That puts a twist in the equation—what is daily bread?

Bread is what you need—physically, intellectually, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. Pray for the necessities, not the niceties of life. It’s too easy to be distracted from what’s important.

During the Korean War, a general commissioned his staff to survey all of his commanding officers about their most acute needs. His staff visited with COs leading infantry units at the front, managing M*A*S*H units a few miles back, and supervising headquarters staff. The results startled the general. Those at the front lines asked for more ammunition, more bandages, and more soldiers. Those farthest away from the fighting asked for Coca-Cola and better movies. The general reminded everyone that they were fighting a war, not taking a vacation.

You are on the frontlines, not on the sidelines, of your life. When you pray avoid the temptation to pray for daily cupcakes. Allow God to supply your needs and bless you beyond belief.

Someone once quipped, “Life wouldn’t be so hard if it wasn’t so daily.” The movie Groundhog Day hits home because viewers feel trapped in the monotony of the daily grind.

A few minutes after Jesus taught the model prayer, he coached his disciples on worry. He said, “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own” (Matthew 6:34 NASB, emphasis added).

When you pray for daily bread, ask God for what you will need for the next 24 hours. Prisoners of war have reported praying hour-by-hour or minute-by-minute.

It’s as if Jesus anticipated our problems with praying for his will and for daily bread. Almost in the same breath as his instructions on prayer, Jesus said, “Look at the birds. They don’t plant, harvest, or gather the harvest into barns. Yet, your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? Can any of you add a single hour to your life by worrying? And why worry about clothes? Notice how the flowers grow in the field. They never work or spin yarn for clothes. But I say that not even Solomon in all his majesty was dressed like one of these flowers.”

When you doubt his provision and pray for daily bread with a skeptical heart, look around at the majesty of creation that he holds together.

After Jesus fed the multitudes, the crowd became too rowdy. Jesus headed to the mountains and the disciples headed to the water. A storm tossed the ship in the middle of the night. While they trimmed sails, they spotted Jesus walking across the lake. They invited him into the boat and “immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going” (John 6:21 NASB). The crowds chased Jesus all the way to Capernaum. They were hunting for more food and more miracles. Jesus excited them when he said, “For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world” (6:33).

The crowd only cheered for more, but he silenced them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to me will not hunger, and he who believes in me will never thirst” (6:35).

When you pray for daily bread, don’t forget that the ultimate bread is Jesus himself. Ask him to draw close, to surprise you amid your stormy seas, and be the provision that never leaves you hungry.

“For the bread of God is that which comes down out of heaven, and gives life to the world.” Then they said to Him, “Lord, always give us this bread.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to me will not hunger, and he who believes in me will never thirst.”

John 6:33–35 NASB

So teach us to number our days

that we may get a heart of wisdom.

Psalm 90:12 ESV

Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

James 4:14 NIV

Goal-setters struggle with the concept of daily bread. “Isn’t it wise to think ahead?” they argue. “Doesn’t the Bible say, ‘count the cost’?” It does, but the Bible also warns, “The mind of man plans his way, but the LORD directs his steps” (Proverbs 16:9 NASB). Ask God for today’s dose of planning ahead always remembering that he clothes every bird and flower.

All the requests in the Lord’s Prayer—including daily bread—are plural. Bible scholar Hank Hanegraaff observes, “Not only are we praying for the needs of our immediate family, but we are praying for he needs of our extended family as well. We do not pray as mere rugged individualists but as members of a community of faith. All we need to do is turn on the television to see that our sisters and brothers around the world suffer daily from maladies ranging from droughts to deadly diseases. Yet, these images fade from our minds before the next commercial interruption.”

Agur, son of Jakeh compiled the wise sayings for what is now known as Proverbs 30. He asked for daily bread in his wise prayer.

“Keep falsehood and lies far from me;

give me neither poverty nor riches,

but give me only my daily bread.

Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you

and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’

Or I may become poor and steal,

and so dishonor the name of my God” (30:7–9 NIV)