UNITY WAY

June 6, 2004

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The Art of Prayer: Provision

by Andrei Yashurin

It has been said that riches of God's substance exceed 
all possible human demands. That's why we may claim our 
necessary supply, being confident that it will be freely 
given to us. God encourages us to ask for provision, as it 
is indicated in the Lord's Prayer: "Give us this day our 
daily bread" (Matthew 6:11).

It is clear enough that the word "bread" is not to be 
understood literally. It includes all elements which support 
and "feed" us on different levels of our existence.

In his book "Prosperity", Charles Fillmore wrote: "It is 
perfectly logical to assume that a wise and competent 
Creator would provide for the needs of His creatures in 
their various stages of growth. The supply would be given 
as required and as the necessary effort for its appropriation 
was made by the creature. Temporal needs would be met by 
temporal things, mental needs by things of like character, 
and spiritual needs by spiritual elements... This is a crude 
yet true illustration of the underlying principles on which 
the human family is supplied on this earth".

As Paul expressed the same idea, "God shall supply all 
your needs according to His riches in glory" (Philippians 4:19).

Human prayers for provision often lack faith and corresponding 
answers because of people's self-preoccupation. When we 
concentrate on ourselves, perhaps the only thing we can think 
of is our visible lack of resources. Needless to say, it 
does not stimulate our faith. Instead, we are called to 
center our attention on God and to behold divine abundance, 
"His riches in glory".

This particular expression, "daily bread" implies that we need 
to live in God's flow, at this present moment. Let us accept 
what is ours to accept, but always give what is ours to give. 
If we withhold our giving today because of fear that we may 
not receive adequate supply tomorrow, we will stop the 
flow of blessings. We will act in fear rather than in faith. 
And if our today's self-expression is stamped with the fear 
of lack, our tomorrow's manifestations will produce lack.  

There is only one safe way to create a better tomorrow - 
to live fully today. As Jesus pointed this out, tomorrow 
will take care of itself - but not before today is taken 
care of.

Of course, this doesn't mean that we can be wasteful in 
handling of our resources. Wastefulness, at its root, is 
also fear-conscious. A person that squanders his/hers 
possessions in search for immediate self-gratification 
displays underlying fear of tomorrow. "Let us eat and drink, 
for tomorrow we die!" Such an attitude does not bring 
much joy.

As we said, there is manifold provision for different human 
needs. But the most important aspect of our daily supply is 
a living flow of divine ideas. Ideas were called the coin 
of God's realm. They are the best gifts of the Father. Their 
value exceeds all material things. 

All visible possessions are subject to processes of corruption 
and decay. They are destroyed by "moth and rust". They often 
become broken or stolen. They soon become outdated, and in 
most cases lose their value. No wonder why attachment to visible 
things or reliance on them brings so much disappointment. 

Ideas, on the contrary, are able to grow and multiply 
infinitely. Divine ideas, which are in harmony with the 
universal laws, attract similar ideas and become stronger. 
At the due time they clothe themselves with flesh and blood, 
and become blessings to the world.

In our search for provision, let us give divine ideas their 
proper place. "Man shall not live by bread alone (physical 
bread), but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth 
of God" (Matthew 4:4).

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Andrei Yashurin: pczine@yandex.ru

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All messages (c) 2004 by Andrei Yashurin