D. Todd Christofferson on seeking daily help from God

Elder D. Todd Christofferson (1945- ) was called to the Seventy in 1993, and as a member of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles in 2008.

"Asking God for our daily bread, rather than our weekly, monthly, or yearly bread, is also a way to focus us on the smaller, more manageable bits of a problem. To deal with something very big, we may need to work at it in small, daily bites. Sometimes all we can handle is one day (or even just part of one day) at a time....

"The Spirit can guide us when to look ahead and when we should just deal with this one day, with this one moment. If we ask, the Lord will let us know through the Holy Ghost when it may be appropriate for us to apply in our lives the commandment He gave His ancient Apostles: 'Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof' (3 Nephi 13:34; see also Matthew 6:34).

"I have suggested that asking for and receiving daily bread at God's hand plays a vital part in learning to trust God and in enduring life's challenges. We also need a daily portion of divine bread to become what we must become. To repent, improve, and eventually reach 'the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ' (Ephesians 4:13), as Paul expressed it, is a step-by-step process. Incorporating new and wholesome habits into our character or overcoming bad habits or addictions most often means an effort today followed by another tomorrow, and then another, perhaps for many days, even months and years, until victory is achieved. But we can do it because we can appeal to God for our daily bread, for the help we need each day."

- D. Todd Christofferson, "Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread," CES Fireside, BYU, 9 January 2011
Click here to read the full talk

This talk by Elder Christofferson included some interesting reflections on dealing with the challenges that sometimes befall our mortal experiences. He encourages us to consider a narrow, limited focus at times, just confronting the immediate needs and challenges:

There are, of course, appropriate times for long-term planning and seeing things in greater perspective; but Elder Christofferson reminds us, "The Spirit can guide us when to look ahead and when we should just deal with this one day, with this one moment." This is all part of our growth experience, line upon line, gradually and steadily moving forward in life, "learning to trust God" in the process.