Today I’m inviting you to reflect on the phrase “Give us this day our daily bread.” Like all other elements of the Lord’s Prayer, it resonates on many levels.

You are invited to choose some music, which speaks to you and helps you into a reflective mood. The music I am listening to is the beautiful Snowflakes by Marcus Ackermann. Falling snow always makes me think of manna in the wilderness, which looked like snow-flakes.

When the Israelites fled from Egypt, they spent forty years wandering in the wilderness before they entered the Promised Land. During this time, God provided a daily bread-like substance for them to eat in the form of manna (Exodus 16).

Each week I’m finding a different version of the Lord’s Prayer to share with you and today it is the Lord’s Prayer presented by Hannah Pye, our Youth Worker in sign language. Then we move on to the reflection itself: “Give us this day our daily bread.” The term “give” is not one which we tend to use when we want something, we are more likely to say “please may I have…” , which is considered a politer expression. Yet Jesus did not stand on ceremony, he did not shield behind a smokescreen of false politeness.  At a wedding at Cana in Galilee, when the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother was not upset by this seemingly curt reply but simply said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.” (John 2:1-5). Jesus was not being rude, just being honest.

When we say “give us this day our daily bread”, it is a true expression of our daily need for sustenance. In John 6:35, when Jesus says “I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst,” he was not just speaking of our physical need for food, but also our need for spiritual sustenance. God knows what we need for each day. Deuteronomy 8:3 recognises this: “man shall not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God”. This nourishment comes from the Word of God and from communion with Christ, who is the “bread of life.”

Another aspect of the phrase is  the word “us”, we are not just praying for our own needs but for the needs of others. People across the world die every day through lack of food and water. Children going hungry and living in poverty is a reality here in the UK. If we have sufficient “daily bread” for our needs, should we not consider what we can do to help those who have little or nothing? Can we honestly say these words with integrity if we are doing nothing for those worse off than ourselves, for whom “daily bread” is a dream or a luxury?

Over the next week, why not reflect on what “daily bread” means to you, what you need to find sustenance in your everyday life, and where this sustenance comes from?

Finally, try to say the Lord’s Prayer as often as you can. It is simple to say and yet so profound. I pray that the words the Lord taught us will become the very foundation for your prayer life and will bring you much comfort as you feel closer to God. Believe me He is listening.

With blessings

Rev Rona