From Prayers for Every Occasion by Ellen Elwell

Generous God, at times I’m slow to learn your ways and quick to forget how faithfully you provide—just as Jesus’ disciples were. After witnessing Jesus perform the miracle of feeding five thousand people with five loaves of bread and two fish, then later feeding a crowd of four thousand from equally meager fare, the disciples were concerned when they forgot to pack food for the next part of the journey. So swiftly they forgot!

Yet my memory can be just as short. I see your hand in my life and delight in the ways you have sustained me, but days later, I toss and turn, worrying about new unresolved problems. I need to hear the echo of the words Jesus said to his disciples: “How many leftovers did you pick up afterward? Don’t you understand yet?”

Lord, help me to remember how many times you have fulfilled my needs. Help me to get it! With you, my mighty God and Creator, there is no shortage of bread, no lack of resources. You have proclaimed to all of us, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again.” Thank you, Father, for filling me up.