Daily bread has more meaning

by J. Wesley McComb

Give us this day our daily bread (Matthew 6:11; Luke 11:3). Like most Christians, I say this line often but have you ever stopped to consider what you are really asking? Most Americans really do not know what it really means to be hungry. All we have to do is to go to the grocery store or a restaurant.

Jesus added this line because he knew exactly what it meant to be hungry. After his baptism, Jesus fasted in the desert for forty days (Matthew 4:2; Luke 4:2). I cannot fathom what he felt afterwards.

Each of the Gospels records the story of Jesus feeding thousands of people on one or more occasions. As a youth, I remember reading a book telling the story of a boy who donated five loaves of bread and two small fish (John 6:5-14). Why this boy had so much we will never know but he gave all that he had and it was enough.

Through the years, I have heard numerous stories of dinner hosts having to add an extra plate or two when an unexpected person showed up at mealtime. Somehow they always seemed to have enough for everyone.

A distant relative once put a huge bowl of mashed potatoes on the table. My two older brothers took it as a challenge and enlisted my help to eat it all. Our hostess was embarrassed and wanted to fix another bowl but Mother said no.

For most of us, fasting is what we do intentionally trying to lose weight. Sometimes, a medical procedure will require us to fast. Some will fast one day a week during Lent. In all of these cases, fasting is of our own choosing.

Times have been tough this year. During the first quarter, I regularly observed a couple go to a fast food place to buy one hamburger and one drink for each. I noticed they were buying the least expensive items available. They finally revealed to me it was their only meal for the day until they could find more work.

Everyone who watches television knows many people around the world are hungry. Try as we might, politics often gets in the way of feeding the hungry. We still have hungry people who need our help right here in Slidell. What are you doing for the hungry?

Grace and peace in the power of the Holy Spirit.

(J. Wesley McComb is a published author and a member of Christ Episcopal Church, 1534 7^th St, Slidell, 643-4531.)