“Give us today our daily bread.” (Matt 6:11 NIV)

One cold day, in a little town in South Africa, ten men cried out to Jesus about their needs. Each person called out about a specific need that he had at that point in time. The Lord heard each person’s cry and set out to answer them as only He could.

At that very moment, a rich man was clearing out unwanted things in his house. Unbeknown to him, he put into a box the very items that the ten men cried to God for. The rich man decided to leave the box on the pavement so that those going by could help themselves according to their needs. He put a sign on the box, “Take ONLY what you need”.

A few moments later the first man who cried out to Jesus was walking by the rich man’s house. He noticed the box and the sign. He immediately saw in the box a coat he needed and asked for, to keep him warm during the winter. He was indeed so delighted with his find; he decided to take the whole box with him ignoring the sign.

That night he went to bed and smiled with content that his prayer was answered. That night, nine other men went to bed sad that their prayers were not answered.

That very night, the fortunate man’s time came to an end and he stood before Jesus. He was asked about his cry and if his need was met. He excitedly responded yes Lord, I found an entire box. Jesus asked the man why he had ignored the sign and took all the items. At that, the man could not answer and dropped his head.

The Lord pointed out that because of his greed and selfishness; nine other men went home that day without their needs being met…

“Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, ‘Who is the LORD?’ Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonour the name of my God. (Prov 30:8-9 NIV)

Will you today not hesitate to cry out to Him to provide you with your daily bread? Will you remember to be selfless and also to give the Lord thanks for His daily provision? The Lord is good and His goodness endures.

Pastor Ronnie Naidoo
Written 26 July 2014