Day by Day

"Then the Lord said to Moses, "I will rain down bread from heaven for you. The people are to go out each day and gather enough for that day. In this way I will test them and see whether they will follow my instructions." Exodus 16:4

Last summer while I was taking drawing lessons, my friend Betty leaned she had cancer. The day before she went to the hospital for surgery, her spirit seemed nearly depleted. "What am I going to do?" she said, thinking about the demanding weeks ahead of her. "How will I find the strength?"

That evening I found myself doodling on my drawing board, thinking of Betty. Soon I was sketching a loaf of bread. A simple, homemade loaf. Then I put it aside and wen to bed. But during the night I had the most curious dream. Betty was sitting at the table before a loaf of bread, eating a single piece.

The next morning when I came upon my drawing, an idea began to stir in my thoughts. I reached for my Bible and found the verse, "I will rain down bread from heaven" (Exodus 16:4), remembering how day by day God sent nourishment from heaven while his people wandered in the wilderness. There was always just enough for each day. They simply had to trust Him for tomorrow's.

I penciled the verse beneath the sketch of bread and carried it to Betty's hospital room. It was to remind us both . . . when we walk in difficult places, God sends the strength and nourishment to face what comes our way, not all at once, but day by day.

By Sue Monk Kidd, taken from Women's Devotional Bible 2