Give us each day our daily bread.

–Parallel Verses:
John 4:34
“My food,” said Jesus, “is to do the will of him who sent me and to finish his work.”

In the second verse of the Lord’s prayer, we find a pretty simple concept: Pray for food. Now there are many people around the world that do not have enough food to eat, so this makes practical sense to me. But what if I do have enough food to eat? How do I pray? Well, I could pray for those who do not have food and I could pray for God’s Spirit to show me how to help the hungry by sharing my resources.

However, I think there is some additional meat on this bone. Jesus said in John 6:35, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.” So if we are to pray for bread and Jesus said he is the bread of life, that means we should pray for Jesus to be in our life and to feed us spiritually. When we come to him, he satisfies our hunger. When we rest in him, he satisfies our thirst.

And finally, we have the cross-reference in John 4:34, where Jesus says that his food is “to do the will of the one who sent him, and to finish his work.” And so we find that doing God’s will in life fuels our hearts and our spiritual growth. This flies in the face of those who think they can just study God’s Word, pray, and sit on the sidelines. “For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12) We must get dirty in our faith. To join Jesus in his eternal rescue mission is a messy business.

So today, as I pray, Lord help me to see the many layers of meaning behind asking for my daily bread. Help me to meditate on the goodness of your word and your works! Teach me to “taste and see that the Lord is good” and help me to realize that “blessed is the one who takes refuge in him.” (Ps. 34:8).