日用的飲食
馬太福音六章25至34節
25所以我告訴你們，不要為生命憂慮吃甚麼，喝甚麼；為身體憂慮穿甚麼。生命不勝於飲食麼？身體不勝於衣裳麼？
26你們看那天上的飛鳥，也不種，也不收，也不積蓄在倉裡，你們的天父尚且養活他。你們不比飛鳥貴重得多麼？
27你們那一個能用思慮使壽數多加一刻呢（或作：使身量多加一肘呢）？
28何必為衣裳憂慮呢？你想野地裡的百合花怎麼長起來；他也不勞苦，也不紡線。
29然而我告訴你們，就是所羅門極榮華的時候，他所穿戴的，還不如這花一朵呢！
30你們這小信的人哪！野地裡的草今天還在，明天就丟在爐裡，神還給他這樣的妝飾，何況你們呢！
31所以，不要憂慮說：吃甚麼？喝甚麼？穿甚麼？
32這都是外邦人所求的，你們需用的這一切東西，你們的天父是知道的。
33你們要先求他的國和他的義，這些東西都要加給你們了。
34所以，不要為明天憂慮，因為明天自有明天的憂慮；一天的難處一天當就夠了。
信息分享
令我們感到驚訝的是，基督竟然教導我們，在求神饒恕我們的罪之前，先求神賜予日用的飲食；但祂卻的確是這樣教導。當我們求神供應日用的飲食時，我們乃是承認我們要仰賴神供應一切的所需。
我們如果已有收入優厚的工作和固定的入息，還需要祈求神的供應嗎？當然要，因為我們享用的一切都是從神而來的。假使祂的恩手離開我們，假使祂帶走我們的一切，我們便一無所有。
有另一個譯本把這句禱文翻譯為：「求你今天賜下切合我們需要的糧食」。我們今天所吃的食物種類繁多、多不勝數，但真正切合我們需要的，究竟是哪些食物呢？聖經提及幾種糧食，包括絕不可少的「生命的糧」──那正是耶穌基督自己。此外，「神的話語」就像神在曠野所賜下的嗎哪一樣，是我們每天必須享用的靈糧。
聖經還提到「以眼淚當食物給他吃」（詩八十5），和「以艱難給你當餅」（賽三十20）。相信沒有人會喜歡這兩種食物；但神知道我們的需要，祂有時也會把這兩種事物給我們。當我們學會接受它們，甚至仔細品嚐，這些食物必能成就祂在我們身上的計劃。
還要注意的是，我們要求取的乃是「日用的飲食」。換言之，昨天的食物已不夠我們今天及明天的需要。你是否只靠昨天的經驗而活？今天神會賜下哪些新鮮的食物呢？為今天你所領受的感謝神吧！那正是你所求的。
我們日用的飲食，求主今天賜給我們。
OUR BREAD - DAY BY DAY
Matthew 6:25-34
25 “Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?
26 Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?
27 Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?
28 “So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;
29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?
31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or‘What shall we wear?’
32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.
33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.
Message
It may seem surprising that Christ put this request ahead of asking for the forgiveness of our sins. But He did, and when we say these words we are acknowledging that we are dependent on our Heavenly Father to give us, as one version says, 'the bread we shall need'.
Are we really supposed to pray like that when we have a good job and a secure income? Yes, we are, because everything we have comes from our Father. If He took His hand off us, or if He took it off the world, we would have nothing!
Another rendering of this phrase is: "Give us today the bread suited to our needs". How many different kinds of bread are there today? White bread, brown bread, whole meal bread, multi-grain bread… the list goes on and on. What kind do we need? The Scripture mentions several kinds of bread. The Bread of Life, which obviously we all need, is Christ Himself. The Word of God is spoken of as food. That, like the manna in the wilderness, needs to be taken daily.
The bread of tears (Ps 80:5) and the bread of adversity (Isa 30:20) are two more kinds of bread mentioned in the Bible. We are not sure that we want either of these. However God knows what kind of bread I need and He sometimes gives one of these kinds of bread to us. When we have learned to accept and even digest it, the bread He gave is able to do what He planned.
Notice it is "Our daily bread". Yesterday's bread is not sufficient for today, nor tomorrow. Are you living on yesterday's experience? What fresh bread has God given you today? Thank Him for it. It is the daily bread you asked Him to give you.
GIVE US TODAY THE BREAD SUITED TO OUR NEEDS.