Daily Bread 'n Beyond
- Rebecca Montrone
- 4 days ago
- 8 min read
When Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He included a curious and deeply intentional request:
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
(Matthew 6:11)
Not weekly bread.
Not bread for the upcoming month.
Not a guarantee of plenty for the next year.
Daily bread.
This echoes the great wilderness lesson God taught Israel through manna:
“Then the LORD said to Moses,
‘Behold, I am about to rain bread from heaven for you;
and the people shall go out and gather a day’s portion every day,
that I may test them,
whether they will walk in My law or not.’”
(Exodus 16:4)
God deliberately structured His provision so that it could not be hoarded. Any attempt to store it beyond the day resulted in spoilage (Exodus 16:19–20). Why? Because manna was never just about food. It was about trust.
“…He humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna…
that He might make you know
that man does not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes
from the mouth of the LORD.”
(Deuteronomy 8:3)
Daily bread trained them to understand their dependence on God day to day for even the most basic thing needed to keep them alive - food.
WHY DAILY, do you think? I think one reason God emphasizes daily provision is that He delights in demonstrating His minute-by-minute care. When we witness Him stepping into what appears to be a looming financial difficulty, for example, our faith is not only preserved—it is strengthened.
Money anxiety is one of the enemy’s most effective tools.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear,
but of power, love, and a sound mind.”
(2 Timothy 1:7)
The adversary knows that fear fractures trust. A persistent financial worry can quietly erode confidence in God’s goodness if we allow it to linger unchecked. But when we refuse to believe that God will not provide—when we persevere in faith—something profound happens.
Faith grows.
And over time, faith becomes a far more valuable account than any bank balance.
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
(Psalm 23:1)
Eventually, fear and panic give way to a settled, quiet confidence: “I’ve been here before. God has always come through. He will do it again.”
DAILY BREAD IN REAL LIFE
Trusting God for daily bread is not theoretical for me—it is something I experience every day as a business owner.
I know my financial obligations. I know the numbers. And again and again—sometimes in astonishingly precise ways—I watch God match income to expense. Occasionally, He does it with such timing and creativity that all I can do is laugh and say, “There’s the wink.” 😉
“The steps of a man are established by the LORD,
when he delights in his way.”
(Psalm 37:23)
THE HIDDEN SNARES OF ‘MORE THAN ENOUGH’
What, then, might be the potential dangers of having more than daily bread?
First, we can become disconnected from our minute-by-minute dependence on God.
Second, we may begin to take credit: “Look how savvy I am.”
Scripture speaks directly to this temptation:
“Beware lest you say in your heart,
‘My power and the might of my hand
have gotten me this wealth.’
You shall remember the LORD your God,
for it is He who gives you power to get wealth.”
(Deuteronomy 8:17–18)
This is not a condemnation of prosperity. God is very clear that wisdom, diligence, and planning matter.
“The plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance.”
(Proverbs 21:5)
The virtuous and very industrious woman of Proverbs 31 is praised precisely because her household is secure.
She is not anxious about the future—in fact, the scriptures say she smiles at it (Proverbs 31:25).
The danger is not wealth itself. The danger is trusting in wealth.
“Do not toil to acquire wealth;
be discerning enough to desist.
When your eyes light on it, it is gone,
for suddenly it sprouts wings,
flying like an eagle toward heaven.”
(Proverbs 23:4–5)
“NEITHER TOO MUCH NOR TOO LITTLE”
One of the most honest prayers in Scripture captures this tension perfectly:
“Give me neither poverty nor riches;
feed me with the food that is needful for me,
lest I be full and deny You and say,
‘Who is the LORD?’
or lest I be poor and steal
and profane the name of my God.”
(Proverbs 30:8–9)
Sometimes God allows seasons of financial limitation - or other circumstantial limitations, such as health, for example - not as punishment, but as formation.
“I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content…
I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound…
I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.”
(Philippians 4:11–13)
Limitations can also act as a steering wheel—a shepherd’s crook:
“No. If you had the resources to go down that road,
you would—and I don’t want you there.”
Daily bread keeps us close, keeps temptation manageable, and keeps our desires disciplined.
DAILY BREAD KEEPS US ALIVE—IN MORE WAYS THAN ONE
Reliance on daily provision also keeps us engaged in life and industry.
Work is not a curse—it is a gift.
“If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.”
(2 Thessalonians 3:10)
Meaningful work sustains physical, emotional, and mental health. The old saying, “Idle hands are the devil’s workshop,” has deep biblical roots.
What we call “retirement” in modern culture is not a biblical concept. Scripture consistently portrays a life of ongoing usefulness.
“They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green.”
(Psalm 92:14)
Many of us are just hitting our stride later in life—when wisdom, experience, and character converge.
DAILY BREAD… AND BEYOND
Daily bread also prepares us for stewardship of greater resources, should God choose to entrust them to us.
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much.”
(Luke 16:10)
When wealth does come, we know it has not replaced our trust in God—because we trusted Him just as deeply when we had less.
With abundance comes responsibility:
“Everyone to whom much was given,
of him much will be required.”
(Luke 12:48)
Jesus’ parable of the talents makes this unmistakably clear (Matthew 25:14–30).
Resources are not meant to be hoarded or wasted but invested in what matters to God.
“Command those who are rich in this present world
not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth…
but to be rich in good works,
generous, and ready to share.”
(1 Timothy 6:17–18)
SEEK FIRST Jesus brings it all together with breathtaking simplicity:
“Do not be anxious about tomorrow…
But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness,
and all these things will be added to you.”
(Matthew 6:34, 33)
God provides through our work, through unexpected opportunities, through gifts timed perfectly to a need, through ideas that arrive unannounced, through favor that cannot be explained.
And...this simple but profound truth:
“You do not have, because you do not ask.”
(James 4:2)
Our heavenly Father loves for His children to run to Him with every need, so we are never to feel that asking Him for anything is a bother.
DAILY BREAD ’N BEYOND
God promises daily bread—and invites us to ask for it. But He rarely stops there.
“Now to Him who is able to do far more
abundantly than all that we ask or think…”
(Ephesians 3:20)
Daily bread keeps us grounded. Beyond bread reveals His generosity.
And both together teach us who He truly is.
A Closing Prayer: Daily Bread, Daily Trust
Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank You for being the God who provides—not from a distance, not in bulk, but personally, intentionally, and daily. Thank You that You do not simply meet our needs, but meet us in the process of meeting them.
Teach us to trust You for today’s bread, today’s strength, today’s wisdom, today’s grace. Help us resist the temptation to live ahead of You—stockpiling tomorrow’s worries, rehearsing tomorrow’s fears, or measuring our security by numbers instead of faith.
When our resources feel small, remind us that You are not. When provision comes quietly, help us notice. When it comes unexpectedly, help us smile and say thank You.
Guard our hearts from pride when there is abundance, and from despair when there seems to be lack. Keep us dependent without being anxious, diligent without being self-reliant, and grateful in every season.
Train us, day by day, to recognize that You are enough—whether You give what appears to be little or much—and prepare us to steward well whatever You place in our hands for the sake of Your kingdom and Your glory.
We trust You for today. And tomorrow, we will come back and ask again.
Amen.
Key Scriptures on God’s Faithful Provision to "Chew On"
Matthew 6:11
“Give us this day our daily bread.”
Matthew 6:33
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Matthew 6:34
“Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself.”
Psalm 23:1
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.”
Psalm 37:25
“I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.”
Philippians 4:19
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”
Luke 12:24
“Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap… and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?”
Proverbs 30:8
“…Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me.”
Deuteronomy 8:3
“…Man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD.”
Hebrews 13:5
“…Be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”
James 1:17
“Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights…”
Ephesians 3:20
“Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think…”
Psalm 34:10
“They that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.”
Psalm 84:11
“No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.”
Psalm 145:15–16
“The eyes of all wait upon thee; and thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest thine hand, and satisfiest the desire of every living thing.”
Isaiah 33:16
“…Bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.”
Isaiah 58:11
“And the LORD shall guide thee continually, and satisfy thy soul in drought…”
Jeremiah 29:11
“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the LORD… to give you an expected end.”
Lamentations 3:22–23
“It is of the LORD’S mercies that we are not consumed… They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness.”
Luke 11:9–10
“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find…”
Luke 12:29–31
“…Neither be ye of doubtful mind. For all these things do the nations of the world seek after… But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
Romans 8:32
“He that spared not his own Son… how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?”
2 Corinthians 9:8
“And God is able to make all grace abound toward you; that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may abound to every good work.”
1 Timothy 6:6–8
“But godliness with contentment is great gain… having food and raiment let us be therewith content.”
Hebrews 4:16
“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”
