Read Proverbs Chapter 30.
“Two things I ask of you, Lord;
do not refuse me before I die:
Keep falsehood and lies far from me;
give me neither poverty nor riches,
but give me only my daily bread.
Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you
and say, ‘Who is the Lord?’
Or I may become poor and steal,
and so dishonor the name of my God. ” NIV
If you want to pray a bold prayer, pray these verses. It was years ago that these particular verses caught my eye. I remember catching my breath when I read them and they began to sink into my brain. The first part is easy. God don’t let me be lied too, by anyone. That I definitely crave in this world filled with so much lying and deceit. Help me always to see the truth.
It’s the second part that is more challenging. Lord, let me live paycheck to paycheck. That’s essentially what Agur is asking here.
Agur’s name, by the way, means “stranger”. There is very little known about him, very little I could find on him. He’s writing this letter to a couple of his friends. He appears to be a man of wisdom. He is definitely a man of courage. Of course, in his day and age, the term “daily bread” was much more real, as they had to bake it fresh every day. We just have to run to the grocery store for our, it usually lasts a few days, even a week.
Let’s be honest, who wants to live paycheck to paycheck? None of us. We want money in the bank, retirement’s fully funded and all of our financial worries taken care of for us. That is not what grows us closer to God. What grows us close to God is our dependence on Him FOR our daily bread. Here in America, there are very few of us who have to worry about where our bread is coming from today. Even if you don’t think you’re rich, you are, just because you live in America. If you have a roof over your head, a bed to sleep in and food in the refrigerator you are in the top 8% of the wealthiest people in the world.
It’s what makes us less dependent on God, not more dependent on Him.
It’s a hard prayer to pray, let me live paycheck to paycheck so I can be more dependent on You, God. Let’s start small, let’s start by thanking Him for our Daily Bread which He has given us in such abundance. Let’s be grateful for His provision that provides for us to live in the wealthiest country in the world. Let’s pray, each day we draw closer to Him, no matter how much bread we have. Let’s be grateful we don’t have to bake our bread, it comes neatly wrapped and sliced for us.
