Daily Bread
“Give us today the food we need.” Matthew 6:11
George Mueller grew up in Germany in the early 1800s. After finishing college, he moved to England where he pastored a small church. He did not allow the church to pay him a salary. From the time he became a believer in Christ, George Mueller had learned to trust God to meet his needs. God always did. God called George to open an orphanage to take care of the children he saw living on the streets or those in state-run poorhouses, where they were treated badly.
The orphanage was a huge undertaking, but George trusted God to meet the needs of the orphanage the same way he had trusted God to meet his personal needs. The following story from christianity.com is perhaps the most famous and definitely my favorite.
“The children are dressed and ready for school. But there is no food for them to eat,” the housemother of the orphanage informed George Mueller. George asked her to take the 300 children into the dining room and have them sit at the tables. He thanked God for the food and waited. George knew God would provide food for the children, as he always did. Within minutes, a baker knocked on the door. “Mr. Mueller,” he said, “last night I could not sleep. Somehow I knew that you would need bread this morning. I got up and baked three batches for you. I will bring it in.”
Soon, there was another knock at the door. It was the milkman. His cart had broken down in front of the orphanage. The milk would spoil by the time the wheel was fixed. He asked George if he could use some free milk. George smiled as the milkman brought in ten large cans of milk. It was just enough for the 300 thirsty children.
We would all love to have the faith of George Mueller, but Jesus tells us plainly in Matthew 6 that, like George Mueller, we are to trust God for our daily needs. He didn’t tell us to pray for enough bead for the week, but to ask God for our daily bread.
While the children of Israel were wandering in the wilderness, God provided a bread-like substance for the Israelites called manna. Every morning the manna would appear and they were to gather just enough for that day. When they crossed over the Jordan River into the promised land the Bible says, “The manna ceased.” There was plenty of milk and honey in the promised land, but the lesson they learned in the wilderness was that God provides our every need. Whether it be manna or milk and honey, every day that we have bread, or food to eat, is a day to be thankful.