Give Us This Day

The prayer Jesus taught his disciples takes a turn with this phrase. It opens addressing Our Father and recognizing Our Father’s position and authority. At this point, the focus turns to practical needs.

Give. It’s a simple request indicating a desire to receive something wanted. Give. Not sell, lend, borrow, or trade.

When I ask for something to be given, I’m asking to receive possession of something I didn’t already have. Something I need. Something I want.

Sometimes it feels selfish to pray with words that sound like “gimme, gimme.” But the prayer isn’t “give me,” but give us. All of us. All the folk who are children of Our Father.

Give us. Everything we have ultimately comes from the hand of Our Father, but in our everyday experiences, many of the blessings and necessities of life arrive only through the assistance of other people.

For example, my husband and I routinely give thanks to God when we sit down to a meal. Perhaps you do the same. Saying “grace” is a common practice, acknowledging the divine source behind earth’s bounty. But, there’s more. God does not miraculously cause food to spontaneously arrive on the dinner table.

Food reaches our tables thanks to the efforts of many. Farmers and ranchers care for crops and animals. Agricultural workers help cultivate fields, tend to livestock, and bring in the harvest. And, even though I live in a rural area surrounded by farms, acquiring the ingredients that end up in my kitchen doesn’t typically begin with a trip next door. It begins with a trip to the grocery store, where products are available only after they have been processed, inspected, packaged, and delivered. Retail workers stock shelves and operate the cash registers (or at least monitor the self-checkout lanes) so that I can get the food that will end up on my table.

The list of people responsible for my dinner doesn’t end there. In today’s world, moving food from field to table requires the participation of researchers who help improve yields, reduce diseases, and explore ways to mitigate unwanted environmental consequences. Equipment manufacturers design and build tools to facilitate every step of agricultural processes. Trucks and trains that deliver products rely on laborers who build and maintain the necessary infrastructure. The list goes on and on.

If I knew the name of everyone who played a role in my evening meal and stopped to mention them individually, I would never have an opportunity to take a bite. So, I give thanks to God, and ask him to give to us all. Give us.

While food is important, I remember many other necessities of life. Air. Water. Shelter. Relationships. Meaningful purpose. They all come from God’s hand. And, there is a lengthy list of things that are important or desirable for comfort, even if not technically necessary. Plumbing. Air conditioning. Reliable transportation. Adequate phone signal. A dependable internet connection. Everything ultimately rests on God’s provision.

But when do I want us to receive? This day. On one level, the request is for the immediacy of current need. Give to us today, for this current 24-hour cycle. On another level, day addresses the needs of this current industrial and computer age in which we are all so interdependent. Or again this day, this time in history when humanity lives on earth in the flesh.

Although the exact timeframe that gives rise to need may be unclear, a request for current aid seems intended. So, what do we want God to give us? And, perhaps more importantly, how should we offer our hands for God’s use in giving to others?