Every time I get discontent with something I have or own I have to pray the Lord's Prayer. Specifically, I have to repeat to myself, over and over, this one line, "and give us this day our daily bread."
I think to myself,
"My computer is really old. It's slow and lame and out of date. It freezes all the time. I wish I had a new computer... Sigh. 'And give us this day our daily bread.'"
"My house is small. The floors creak when I walk down the hall or to the bathroom. The appliances are old and out of date. The lawn is full of weeds. I wish I had a newer house that was bigger and less squeaky. I wish I had a new lawn full of grass.... Sigh. 'And give us this day our daily bread.'"
"Man, that new iPhone looks really sweet. My current phone isn't all that old. It works just fine. It does all that I need it to do. But man, I wish I had that new iPhone... Sigh. “And give us this day our daily bread.'"
Most of the time it’s really hard to view all of the things we have and own as gifts. But that's in fact what they are. Even if you've worked really hard, even if you've saved all your money, even if you've sacrificed and sacrificed, everything you have is a gift from God.
"And give us this day our daily bread."
To be Christian is to believe that our good Father in heaven provides us with all that we need. I realize that this can be extremely hard to grasp in those circumstances of life where our needs don't seem to be met.
But for us, here in America, our needs have been met. We are, and have been, the not so gracious receivers of God's good gifts. This prayer calls us and challenges us to believe this and to believe that these good gifts we have are enough. To pray this prayer is to be content in what God has given us.
As we've said from the beginning of our journey praying the Lord's Prayer, this Prayer isn't just about what God wants to do in us or wants us to realize or believe, it's about what God wants us to do. Yes, we are receivers of God's good gifts, of the daily bread which sustains us from day to day, but now we are also givers.
To be Christian never stops with receiving. It always moves toward giving. The end goal, for us as those who have received, is to give as Christ has given.
Praying "and give us this day our daily bread" only hoping to be taken care of or to learn to be content with what we have falls short. There is one little word in this phrase that refocuses the whole thing – the word "us". "Us" is plural. To pray "give us" is to include a hope for all those who don't have. It is a prayer that hopes and believes that God will provide for the needs of all those, everywhere, who are starving and hungry.
But it's also a call for us to answer that prayer. As receivers, we are now called to be givers. God has called us to be his sons and daughters, apprentice sons and daughters. God is the giver of all things great and small. As we pray this Prayer, we are learning what it means to be like our great gift giving Father. So, now we must go praying this Prayer, learning to see where there is no bread, and to be givers like our Father in heaven.
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