Want or Need?

"When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can't sleep
Stuck in reverse"
-"Fix You" by Coldplay

This week we hear the story of Jonah play out in the daily Mass readings, http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/100511.cfm. Today it seems in some ways, in his desire and his attempt to escape God's will, he got what he wanted but not what he needed, nothing quite worked out, and in the end he was no happier; perhaps stuck in reverse? Which brings us to the Gospel for today in which we hear St. Luke's account of Jesus instructing His disciples to pray which over time has became for us The Lord's Prayer or The Our Father, one of, if not the most common prayer amongst Christians.

When we think of, "Give us this day, our daily bread," what do we truly think of? In this request, this prayer of supplication to the Lord, do we assume this to mean what we think we want or do we acknowledge and humbly ask God to sustain us with what we truly need?

What we want and what we truly need can at times be two different things. Could it be that we can see the brush stroke but God sees the picture? I remember a field education assignment in the seminary some years back, it wasn't what I wanted and at first I was upset and frustrated but now on the flip side of that experience and some years later, it truly was what I needed. Sort of like, we want the burger and fries but really we need the fruits and veggies.

Today, may we humbly, openly, and honestly pray the Lord's Prayer and when we get to the line, "Give us this day, our daily bread," with love and trust, accept what the Lord gives to us to nourish and sustain us, knowing that is what we truly need.