Love Has a Name

Give us this day our daily bread.

My fellow Christian, this post is for you, and, perhaps, you reader who may be curious and wondering, pondering, or asking questions. How many times have you prayed those words or heard those words? The Lord’s Prayer details them and it is so very common to hear in times of prayer and times of gathering with others. Often during times of uncertainty and challenge we would pray these words as comfort and think so ourselves, “this is too much to handle.”

I have begun to pray these words but in a new way. The Lord has shown me much deeper what exactly He means when Jesus says “when you pray, say…” Luke 11:2

Firstly, I need to share some context. Living in Southeast Asia during the pandemic has been a, let’s say unforgettable, experience. Being in a country with limited access to trusted media sources makes it difficult to accurately assess what is happening around the city and the nation.

Let me try to make this brief. At the organization where I serve, some younger children, plus myself and a co-worker, tested positive for covid. As a result of this we were quarantined in a government facility for 3 days, followed by 13 days at a decent hospital.

Keep in mind, this was in a 3rd world country where the standards of hygiene and cleanliness are vastly different from North America.

Having lived here for nearly 3 years, I am not yet fluent in the language but I can get by. I can survive, eat, shop, get around the city and generally I have no issues. However, when you add the stresses of being covid positive, coupled with some minor symptoms and caring for 4 children (one 7 year old, one 11 year old special needs child and two 13 year olds) the daily stress and duties asked of me were significantly more challenging than usual.

I began to pray and I did my best to read Scripture faithfully and meditate. One thing that was routine, however, was the Lord’s Prayer.

From the Gospel according to Luke 11:2-4

“‘Father,
hallowed be your name,
your kingdom come.
³ Give us each day our daily bread.
⁴ Forgive us our sins,
    for we also forgive everyone who sins against us.
And lead us not into temptation.’”

The Holy Spirit shared with me more of what Jesus means when He says this. It is not only about food. It is about our daily needs, not our greeds, as one commentary puts it.

I could not fathom the amount of needs, spiritually, mentally, and emotionally that I had at that time. Looking back I am not sure how it happened but I know that my Father in heaven answered my prayer, of “give me this day my daily bread.”

I was asked to bring not just my need for literal bread to Him (meals were at times very late, leaving us to think we may not get a meal), but also that the provision of grace and mercy, patience and tolerance would be granted me as well. My North American standards and expectations immediately set in and I had to be kept in check as to what to expect and how to act and react.

Without this prayer I would have had a much more challenging time in quarantine than if I had not been obedient to pray. There were in fact moments where I prayed these simple 7 words and heard the whisper of Jesus telling me, “trust me with today and tomorrow will come“. He alone helped me through some incredibly daunting moments and obstacles that would have been too much to handle otherwise.

And so each day as the hours ticked on I found myself praying, “Lord please, give me this hour my daily bread.” His comfort was enough for those minutes and those hours.

At the end of what turned out to be nearly 6 weeks of quarantine (that’s a story for a different time) I was at peace and in fact began to miss being held by Him minute by minute, hour by hour, and day by day. As a result of His provision of grace and mercy for those weeks I was able to enjoy playing cards and watching movies, taking naps and afternoon walks around the heart shaped flower gardens. Waking up to the kids giggles and falling sleep to the whispers of the kids talking to one another across the room.

Those moments which are now so precious would have been missed and completely lost had I not relied on the Lord for my daily bread.

And so for you my brother and sister or fellow blog reader, should you be experiencing a challenge, a season, or a wilderness moment, I ask you today to begin to pray to the Lord Jesus Christ and say, “give me today my daily bread,” and slowly, but surely, His goodness and kindness and mercy shall be with you and His provision will be enough.

Be Well. Be Kind. Be Patient.

God bless.