Connect
If you could go out to eat to any favorite restaurant, where would you go? Are there other forms of social gathering that you are missing?

Engage
Jonathan asks “have you ever felt unsure about bringing a small thing to God?” Why have you felt this way?

Manna in the wilderness was a form of daily bread. It was to be gathered every morning, and there was always just enough for everyone. God wanted this to be a daily exercise, every day for the Israelites would wake up and recognize their dependence on God. Read Deuteronomy 8:1-3 and talk about how the practice of gathering manna applied to more than just food.

Read Matthew 6:25-34. How does your dependence on God makes you feel valuable to Him? How does resting in Him for His provision allow you to relax and stop worrying?

Jonathan uses the example of having two loaves of bread, how it may be that the second loaf has been provided for someone else. Bread (especially in Jesus’ time) couldn’t be hoarded because it would spoil. Do you have this mindset of offering small things to others every day? How does this affect your attitude toward even bigger things you may have?

Apply
Jesus starts the prayer addressing our Father. He recognizes Who He is addressing before asking for anything. We have already learned the importance of this in our relationship with God, but can we also apply this in our interaction with others?

1 Timothy 6:6–8 says “But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” Do you see a scriptural pattern here? How are you learning to appreciate the “great gain” of having neither too much or too little?

Big plans look to the future, gathering and preparing, and we depend on God for those. What are you going to do to remember your dependence on God for the daily routines?

Jonathan said “Is there anything wrong with having nice things? Of course not.” Do you remember what the problem with nice things was? (hint: the problems come when those nice things have us) How do you find yourself falling into this?

Pray
Our Father, the One who keeps us fed both in our bodies and in our souls, we recognize our need to understand how much we depend on you for everything. Nothing comes from us - everything comes from You. We so easily focus on keeping what we have or obtaining what we don’t have, rather than thanking you for each moment of living in the place you put us. Give us our daily bread with contentment and a desire to share. Let us glorify you with our choices and see you move in a might way. Amen.