“Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread” …But What If You’re Rich?

Jake Ridley, CFP®

Jake is a CFP® and Senior Advisor at Astoria Strategic Wealth. He lives in Round Rock, TX with his wife, Lauren, and two children, Georgia and David.

Americans Have A LOT of “Daily Bread”

Was Jesus really speaking to us Americans when he said to pray, “give us this day our daily bread”?

I mean, people really needed daily bread back then. But now, we’ve got the “daily” thing covered, right?

How covered exactly?

Most Americans have 25 years of “daily bread” stored up in their accounts. AND THE WEALTHIEST AMERICANS HAVE HUNDREDS OR EVEN THOUSANDS OF YEARS’ WORTH.

Need proof?

If you’ve read anything I’ve written, you know I love some facts and data.

On the food front, according to this analysis, Americans spend an average of $21.17 per day. So, $21.17 for our “daily bread”.

And how much daily bread could Americans purchase if we sold all our stuff?

Using this net worth data from the Federal Reserve, we can see the breakdown of net worth for the entire country.

Combining the two sources paints a crazy picture.

Wow.

So, how in the world are we to ask God for our daily provision with a straight face when we’ve got thousands of “days” worth?

This is something I’ve been wrestling with lately after listening to this Bible Project podcast on The Lord’s Prayer. So, I by no means have it figured out. But here are some things that have helped. There are no silver bullets but these have helped me gain perspective on where my daily bread actually comes from – regardless of the amount.

Reflect on When God Provided in the Past

One of my favorite verses in the Bible is 1 Samuel 17:37 where David says, “The Lord who rescued me from the claws of the lion and the bear will rescue me from this Philistine!”.

The backdrop is David volunteering to fight Goliath after the Israelite army has cowered in fear. And after volunteering, Saul calls his act “ridiculous”. So, what does David rely on to give him the confidence to fight this seemingly invulnerable enemy? His intellect? Nope. His athleticism? Negative. His slingshot skills? Not that either. David recounts past experiences of God’s deliverance. In short, he relies on God, through faith, strengthened by real experiences (not theoretical).

What does this have to do with daily bread? For me, when my security is threatened by an unexpected bill (or many unexpected bills like recently), I try to remind myself of when God provided in the past.

For example, when our daughter, Georgia, was a newborn, and we had very little money, God provided in some very tangible ways. I draw on those experiences, “He delivered me in the past and will therefore deliver me today and in the future.”.

He will continue to provide my daily bread just as I have seen him do in the past. And even more, the daily bread I have today is a result of his past faithfulness. Remember tangible, practical ways God has faithfully provided.

Be Specific

This is one of my favorite little gospel nuggets. It comes when Jesus is about to feed the five thousand and, “Taking the five loaves and the two fish…he gave thanks and broke the loaves.” (Matthew 14:19) By giving thanks, Jesus clearly connects the provision to the provider.

Whether we are ‘well-fed or hungry’, our provision is directly from God. The temptation for me as I am more ‘well-fed’ today than I was ten years ago, is to start taking the daily provision for granted. I want to replace God as my provider with me (look what I did!).

How can we counter this?

Recently, one exercise our family has started is to thank God for each item of food when we have a meal. So, rather than a generalized “thank-you for this food”, we’ll say, “thank-you for this chicken, green beans, potatoes, salad, and tea.”

The first time we did it, it took forever to list all the items. It was actually pretty funny, almost ridiculous. But that’s the point, I think. God has ridiculously and abundantly blessed us.

Being specific about what God has provided seems to help in taking things for granted, and more importantly connects him to the blessing.

Disclaimer: Do not get the impression that the Ridley’s do this every meal and we all lived “happily ever after”.

See What the Whole Bible Has to Say

The Bible has a lot to say about trust in God’s provision. And the more I’ve read the Bible, the more I see that as one of the core messages.

For example, God tested the Israelites in the wilderness to see if they would trust in his daily provision – and it was a real ‘daily’ – by having them collect manna (“enough for each day”) and resting on Sabbath (this is the story Jesus is referring to when he says to pray for ‘daily bread’).

This test was just one giant exercise in trust so that they would not have any doubt who provided their ‘daily bread’. Spoiler: they failed the test. But does this mean the only way to truly trust God’s daily provision is through extreme poverty? No.

Proverbs and Ecclesiastes have plenty of guidance on planning, stewarding, and even enjoying one’s wealth. Paul even talks about being content “whether well-fed or hungry”. We typically think about the ‘hungry’ portion of the verse, but we can also be discontent when ‘well-fed’.

The point? Whether we have little or much, our provision is in God and God alone. Our security is not in the amount of our accounts. Is it okay to have wealth? Yes. The problem comes in trusting in that wealth rather than God. And it is a real temptation, hence all the warnings.

The key is to have the perspective of Job. He summarized this best when he said, “The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, blessed be the name of the Lord”. God is our provider and whether we have much or little, it does not change his character or demeanor towards us. Reading the Bible as a whole helps highlight this core message even further.

Pray

My natural inclination towards most challenges is willpower. Unfortunately, I’ve learned I can’t willpower my way into this. I want to take credit for any success I have. And without the Holy Spirit enlightening my eyes, my heart just does not seem able to conjure up the perspective of God providing for me daily.

For me, this is where prayer helps. Praying the Lord’s Prayer regularly (“give us today our daily bread”) helps remind me of the source of my provision. Additionally, specifically praying for God to open my eyes to his provision.

Because on my own, even if I follow all the techniques mentioned above, I’m going to be drawn towards making myself the source of my provision. True heart-change is solely from Spirit.

Americans’ Unique Challenge

Americans are unique in history. By most accounts, we live in the most prosperous nation in the history of the world.

Our challenge is not worrying about where our daily provision will come from. Our challenge is that we are tempted to find our ultimate security in stuff. We take credit for the vast amount of things we have accumulated and worry when those are threatened.

We don’t see God as the provider of our daily bread because we have so much.

I know I feel it.

But there are some ways we can gain perspective and remember who our true provider is – no matter how much we have.

And hopefully as we are molded into Jesus’ image we can more authentically pray and believe that God alone provides our “daily bread”.

Disclosure: The views expressed in this article are those of the author as an individual and do not necessarily reflect the views of the author’s employer Astoria Strategic Wealth, Inc. The research included and/or linked in the article is for informational and illustrative purposes. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. Performance reported gross of fees. You cannot invest in an index. The author may have money invested in funds mentioned in this article. This post is educational in nature and does not constitute investment advice. Please see an investment professional to discuss your particular circumstances.

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