Living the Christian Life – Chapter 6: Give Us Our Daily Bread

Next in the Lord’s Prayer we pray, “give us this day our daily bread.” This daily bread is both spiritual and material. At this part of the template, we are praying first that God will bless us with spiritual bread—this includes the fruit of the Spirit at work in our life: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). Our spiritual daily bread feeds our soul.

Then there is the prayer for material daily bread. The apostle Paul declares:

“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God
what you need, and thank him for all he has done” (Philippians 4:6 NLT).

God is pleased to provide for our needs, and He desires for us to ask Him as part of our relationship with Him.

Forgive Our Sins as We Forgive Others

In order to keep our relationship with God strong, it’s important for believers to repent for sin when it happens. Part of our daily time with the Lord should be keeping “short accounts” with God. At the same time, it’s important that we also forgive those who “sin against us.”

God wants us to come with Him for our needs and to thank Him for the answers to our prayers. In Christ’s teaching on the Lord’s prayer in the Gospel of Matthew, He reinforces the importance of forgiveness:

“If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins” (Matthew 6:14-15 NLT).

The Bible tells us, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18 NIV). If you need to forgive anyone, take a moment to do so right now. And if you are having a hard time forgiving that person, ask the Lord to give you His grace to do so. You will be amazed at what God can do with a person who is willing to forgive—even if he or she doesn’t feel like it.

Forgiveness is an important part of the Christian lifestyle, and that is why it’s important to pray this on a daily basis.

Protection from Temptation

In our human weakness, we are vulnerable to the temptations of the world and of the devil. We need God’s grace and strength on a daily basis to walk in God’s ways. That is why Jesus included in the template, “And don’t let us yield to temptation, but rescue us from the evil one” (Matthew 6:13 NLT).

It’s important to pray for God’s protection for our families and ourselves every day.

 

[1] Lewis, C.S. Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer. 9 April 2019. <https://cslewisthoughts.tumblr.com/post/184058488281/it-seems-to-me-we-must-conclude-that-such>.

[2] Lewis, C.S. “”Thy Will Be Done” – C.S. Lewis on the Third Petition, from Letters to Malcolm: Chiefly on Prayer.” 10 December 2011. Pseudepigraphus. <https://www.pseudepigraph.us/2011/12/10/thy-will-be-done-c-s-lewis-on-the-third-petition-2/>.