Week 26 Day 3
Pray:
Ask God to reorient you to Himself. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Be still and reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to God’s Word. Pray for others in your life that they, too, would know and love God today.
Read:
Matt. 6:9-13 This, then, is how you should pray: “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.”
Reflect:
Many 1st century workers were paid one day at a time. This meant that a few days of illness or an injury could have tragic consequences. This prayer for daily bread reflects this kind of short-term lifestyle. Long-term planning is wise, but we do not have ultimate control over our future. It’s not wrong to save money or put away food for a time of disaster or need. It is wrong to rely on our own planning and saving. Listen to what Jesus said in this regard:
“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’ “This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:15-21)
Can you see how a daily prayer for daily bread can be a protective barrier against the folly of pursuing personal security over the pursuit of a rich faith in God? How many have lived exactly as that parable describes? They have lived with no sense of need, no prayers for daily bread, no need for God in their present or their future. Then, suddenly, all their planning has come to nothing. Oh God, give us today our daily bread and give us today the wisdom to understand our daily need for you. Today, tomorrow, and forever make us rich in faith towards you.
Pray:
(Personalize this prayer today; make it specific to the circumstances that face you.)
Ask God to lead you through His Spirit as you go through your day. Ask Him to bring to mind the truth of the gospel and its implications for what you will encounter today. Tell Him “Yes” to His will and ask Him for His power and protection to live this “yes.” Ask God to create and reveal opportunities to proclaim the good news today.