THIS IS OUR DAILY BREAD   

            Our call to daily dependence is living on manna.  Give us today our daily bread.  Not our bread for tomorrow or ahead to next week, but only for today.  This leads us to take a terrifying journey of living a life of absolute dependence on the miraculous hand of God.  We call out to God for miracles but we don’t really want to be the paralytic or the leper.  We really just want to be entertained by the miracles of God when what we need to be is transformed by them.

       Is it enough to know God is going to provide?  Or do we have to know what tomorrow holds before we begin the journey?  Can we enter into the unknown with a sense of security that God will provide?  When we don’t have huge reserves or a plan 'B', that extra bit of manna, or just in case God doesn’t pull through plan, do we trust God to be our only true provision?  Yes we do!  And then he is able to begin to use us in ways he never could have before.  Where the risk to those who don’t believe would be too great, we can stand and step out into the river believing it will divide.  Where others see giants, we will see a land God has already given to us.  God has called us to this level of trust to be used as a foundation he uses to change the hearts of those around us.  He is our Manna! We need God and not just a little, but desperately.  From the moment we wake up to the time we lay down and even when we sleep.

Jesus called us to pray for “daily bread” we don’t control tomorrow God does, we trust in his presence and his provision for today to be sufficient for our needs.  The Israelites went with plan B and tried storing up the manna that was only meant for that day. It was there just in case God doesn’t pull through, and as a result it rotted and filled with maggots.  This is a result of plan B when we look at the risks involved. We are tempted at this point to ask the “What if God fails me?”  And we start gathering up the resources for our back up plan.  The problem here is we aren’t usable when we need a plan B to be safe.  We need to follow him into the unknown. That is where we can be used by him.  He wants us to let go and be absolutely dependent on him and empty our pockets of the plan B manna and shift the weight of our trust into his faithfulness.  Jesus is calling us to pray for the kind of faith that doesn’t need a pile of reserves before we are willing to begin the journey.

We should want to be participants and not just a spectator in the miracles of God, and want to see him transform our lives so much that we are willing to allow him to take us into dangerous territory.  We must walk with God through the valley of death for us to really know there is no need to fear evil.  We can watch others walk in the valley from afar, but we can only become more like him if we are willing to endure the trials that lead to transformation.

Do we trust God to come through for tomorrow?  Jesus told us in this world we would have trouble (John 16:33) but to take heart he has over come the world.  What appears as nonsense to those who don’t believe God has their back makes perfect sense to those whose character has been transformed by adversity.  The believer can see the hope that is centered in God’s caring presence in his or her life.  The terrible circumstances may still cause your knees to shake.  Take heart, he has over come the world. Let your emotions express themselves in anticipation.  It isn’t “if God comes through” but “when God comes through.”  Refuse to trust other resources for safety. We must turn to God to meet our needs.  He is our only source of protection.  He protects in the unexpected, the just in time, with just enough. He provides the manna.  No matter what we face or how difficult our situation may become, God has it under control.  God is with us so we are OK.  Don’t get lost in the desert, listen for God's call to the promised land. Settle for nothing less than His complete will.  Be obedient rather than choosing excuses and stand firm in the battles that obedience brings.  We have lived on manna and have become transformed by it.  God is our ultimate and only provider.

We will never enjoy the day here when we posses everything we need for tomorrow’s challenges.  We will always need more from God than we have right now.  As we are transformed in the journey of living on manna, we learn to enjoy being participants in Gods miracles.   We are taught that spiritual transformation only happens as we walk with the shepherd closely eating the manna he has provided us for that day.  It is during the dark days walking through the valley of the shadow of death that we learn to listen for the Shepherd's voice.

Like the children of Israel, we will be tempted to turn to other sources of safety for our provision, shifting away from the creator to his creation, being tempted to trust in our own ability to provide over God’s.  We may even be tempted to believe God has left us as the journey gets tough.  Choose to be faithful and look for the transformation in the trial; be obedient even when it’s difficult.  Refuse to value the blessing over the blessing giver.  It is a faith that only worships God, and becomes overly committed to God’s “plan A”.

 As we place our faith in God’s call he will use us to transform our world.  Whether in plenty or want, we will be choosing to live on manna.

- Julie

Julie Leon lives in the Kansas City area with her husband Scott and their four children.

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