When Jesus taught his disciples to pray and came to the part where he said “Give us this day our daily bread”, most likely those Jewish boys went back in their minds to the time when God made manna fall from heaven to feed His people in the wilderness after bringing them out of slavery in Egypt. They not only declared his dependence on God but also had to rely daily on Him to make manna rain from heaven so they could eat. Manna was the bread which God sent them each day from heaven because in the desert there was nothing to eat.

Matthew 6:11
Give us today our daily bread.

In making this statement Jesus was saying that we cannot forget that our daily provision comes from God, although our refrigerators are filled for several days, the bank account has money and all our needs met, we must continue to recognize that God is who provides for us.

Just as the Jewish people in Exodus woke up in the morning saying, “Today I need God to fulfill my needs” we should too, because the only reason we have in abundance is because of Him and our dependence on Him.

Many times people think that because they have so much they don’t need God. Their security is in their savings, and although it’s good to save, you cannot hinge your security on this. Instead, always depend on your Heavenly Father.

This reminds me of the parable of the rich fool who saved and kept so much that he thought about tearing down the barns he had to build larger ones, and said: O my soul, you have stored goods for many years; relax, eat, drink and live the good life. But God said to him, Fool! This night you will die. And who will own what you have amassed?

This person depended on what he had accumulated over the years and when he began to trust in those things to give him the security to rest and have a good life, that same day he lost it.

It’s simple, when we ask God to give us our daily bread we are acknowledging our dependence on Him so that He will supply everything we need daily, even though we might live in abundance.

Heavenly Father, I thank you for always giving me my daily bread. I’ve never lacked this daily allowance because you are a good and gracious God, not because I deserve it. Help me to depend on you for everything every day of my life.