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Good morning. Last week’s G8 summit in Enniskillen certainly helped raise the profile of Northern Ireland but the participants face huge challenges, not least that of hunger in many parts of the world, in places there is little money, frequent shortages and no refrigeration, where people can be hungry because of selfishness and thoughtlessness,

And it was in a society that displayed many of those factors that Jesus taught his disciples to pray ‘Give us today our daily bread’. He wanted his followers to be conscious of their day-to-day dependence upon Him.

That’s why grace said before meals has a far greater poignancy when voiced by a child in Somalia, but in every context it is still a powerful recognition that all we have is a gift from God.

It is not unheard of us chafing at our neediness. Having to ask for help is an admission that we can’t do everything on our own; Money and machines anesthetize our sense of fragility but occasionally, just occasionally something happens to remind us of our vulnerability and weakness.

Someone we love gets sick. We lose our job. We are unable to pay our bills.

That’s when this simple petition really hits home and we recognize that we are not God, but He is. Prayer deals with what is fundamental to our humanity, for nothing is more basic than bread.