our daily bread ..

our father in Heaven may you name be honoured as holy
may your kingdom come and may your will be done on Earth just as it's done in Heaven
give us the food we need for today
forgive our sins just as we forgive those that wrong us 
   and lead us away from temptation 
      and from the Evil One
for the kingdom is yours
   as is the power and the glory
      forever

should be familiar ..
Jesus exemplary prayer
when he was asked " teach us how to pray " ..

one thing that's been in my head recently is the line
give us the food we need for today

slams into a way of life that says
give me enough food for this week
or the next 2 weeks ..

Jesus said to ask for what we need for today
as in .. not for tomorrow or next week ..

interesting
scary
" ahmmm.. only enough for today  ?
what about tomorrow's food
what about the children  ? "

today give us the food we need for today ..

selah ..~

Old story ..
israel walks out of egypt after 400 years of enslavement
lots of them by the way
   think several hundred thousand
      probably
and the egyptians are so anxious to see them get out
they give them stuff
even jewelry and precious stuff

so israel goes
but soon their food supply dwindles
they've been travelling over a month
   and they're now move through wilderness ..
they start to worry and complain

God knows their complaints ..
he can't help but hear

so he comes up with this thing
" i'll give you your food
you won't have to hunt for it
plant it or water it or reap it
pick it off trees or fish for it ..
i'll give it to you
each day
every day "

really  ..

" i'll rain it down for you ..
all you have to do is go outside and collect it off the ground
each day
every day "

really . ... .  ... .

" one other thing ..
i'm giving you enough for that day ..
only collect what you need for that day for your household
that's it
no more ..
2 quarts per person per day "

they called it ' manna '

but .. well .. you know us ..
the first day many of them hoarded
they busted the limit

next morning it smelled and was full of maggots ..
" told ya so .. "
.. .. .. .    .

God even made provision for the sabbath ( 7th day )
   the israelite holy day
   a very strict observance when no work was to be done
      including cooking
he told them to collect twice as much on the 6th day
" i won't let it go bad ..
you won't find any on the sabbath "

ah well.. here we go again
on the sabbath some went out looking for it
even though the leftovers from yesterday were still good to eat ..
no stink and no worms
all good ..
but there was none on the ground
just like God said

strange folk we are
are we not  ?

God says " i gift you with the food you need
you don't have to work for it  "
and even then we slight God

selah ..~

i know i know
we're not israel
and this ain't old testament days
and maybe God was just trying to prove a point or teach them a lesson
and what are you really trying to say here ..  ?

i think what i'm trying to say is
   God is still God in Jesus' day
   even though there is no manna then
and Jesus tells us to rely on God
like israel was counseled to do back in the day
   when God supplied their food each day every day
each day
every day

i know i know
there are lots of questions and ' but's ' and ' impossible's ' and stuff

thing is
i'm thinking God doesn't want us worrying about tomorrow too much ..

God doesn't want us hoarding
hoarding implies tomorrow ..

Jesus said not to be anxious about tomorrow
  today has enough stuff to deal with in this world

Jesus also said we don't know what tomorrow will bring
in fact we don't even know if we're going to be alive tomorrow ..
maybe not ..

so when we stash and stock up and think we're making our big plans
and we don't take God into account
as in looking for him to supply what we need
and rely instead on our careers and jobs and pension and ..
we're being rather .. distrusting
unfaithful
unthankful
we're trusting us
not trusting God
we're banking on our strength and intelligence and investments and ..

and God is sitting there going " ..................... "
drawing a blank as he watches us diss' him
again
just like israel did
back in the day

i don't know
maybe it's because i'm forced into a position of having to wait on God
   that i can be this cavalier in my theothink
to actually believe i can trust God to supply what i need when i need it
maybe i'm just mouthin' off ..

but
i really do believe i should believe it

i think God expects precisely that of me
each day
every day

for my lifeverse goes like this
trust in the Lord with everything i've got
don't presume to rely on my own understanding of things
but submit my thinking to his way of thinking in every situation
and he will show me how to move 
   and level my road ..

i'm not very good at my lifeverse
but i'm trying
i'm trying ..
it may take me the rest of my life to get it
but i'll keep trying

because if i can't rely on my God
then either he's not very much of a god
or i'm simply a poor example of a child of God ..
distrusting
unfaithful
unthankful

so, Lord
you are my God
help me to trust you for the things i need
and to diss' the rest
change my perspective
change my worldview
to your worldview
to allow you the right to supply
and to show you respect by trusting you to do that
each day
every day
in Jesus' name ..

shalom