Day 4: Each day's need
And may these words of mine, which I have prayed before the Lord, be near to the Lord our God day and night, that He may uphold the cause of His servant and the cause of His people Israel according to each day’s need, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other (1 Kings 8:59-60).
Great are You Lord, and worthy of praise; Your greatness no one can fathom (Psalm 145:3). Time and seasons are in Your hands—You alone established the cycles of seed time and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night (Genesis 8:22).
From You come the gifts of rest and sleep, and the dawning of each new day. The psalmist reminds us, I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the Lord sustains me (Psalm 3:5)—when I awake I am still with You (Psalm 139:18).
Lord, You promise us Your presence and Your providential care as You invite us to pray, Give us this day our daily bread (Matthew 6:11 - NKJV). In this prayer, You direct us to pray for more than physical sustenance; the Lord Jesus foiled the tempter's evil scheme by quoting the powerful truth of Scripture from Deuteronomy 8:3: Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God (Matthew 4:4).
Solomon understood the all-encompassing nature of Your daily provision when he asked You to uphold the cause of Your people and their leader according to each day's need (1 Kings 8:59). For You alone know what lies ahead, and You alone can provide what is needful for each new challenge, and each new opportunity.
Father, forgive us for all we take for granted. The wisdom of Your word instructs us, Do not boast about tomorrow, because you do not know what a day may bring (Proverbs 27:1).
Mindful of our total dependence on You, may we come to You with Solomon's posture of humility and gratitude, asking You for our daily bread. We look to You for our material needs, for strength, for health, for protection, for spiritual sustenance, and for prevenient help we do not even know we need.
May we raise our prayers before You day and night, confident that the One who changes times and seasons (Daniel 2:21), the One who gives orders to the morning [and] shows the dawn its place (Job 38:12) will uphold our cause... according to each day's need (1Kings 8:59). And may we be a witness to Your daily, sufficient grace, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord is God and that there is no other (1Kings 8:60).
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