Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. Matthew 6:34

Devotion

One of the most powerful lessons God teaches through manna is not about food—it is about trust.

When the Israelites wandered in the wilderness, God provided manna daily and instructed them to gather only what they needed for that day. Whenever they tried to store extra, out of fear that tomorrow’s provision might not come, it spoiled. God was teaching them a simple but challenging truth: trust me today, and trust me again tomorrow when tomorrow arrives.

The wilderness became a classroom of daily dependence.

Jesus reinforced this same principal centuries later. He taught his disciples to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” and reminded them, “Do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself” (Matthew 6:34). God’s invitation has always been to live with trust in the present while depending on him for the future.

Yet living this way is difficult, especially in today’s climate!

We live in a culture obsessed with what’s next. We have retirement plans, career goals, economic forecasts, endless news cycles, and social media feeds constantly showing us where we should be headed. Planning isn’t wrong—Scripture commends wise preparation. The problem comes when preparation becomes preoccupation.

Too often, our bodies are in today, but our minds are living somewhere in the future.

Why? Because future-thinking can feel like control. We tell ourselves that if we think hard enough, plan carefully enough, or worry long enough, we can prevent uncertainty. But God rarely promises certainty about the future. Instead, he promises his presence.

Throughout Scripture, God’s message is not, “I will show you the next ten years.” It is, “I will be with you.”

That shifts the question from What will happen next? to What has God entrusted to me today?

The conversation in front of you.

The family around your table.

The work in your hands.

The person who needs encouragement.

The opportunity to serve.

The moment you are living right now.

Manna was never found tomorrow. It was found on the ground where the Israelites woke up that morning.

Many of us, especially in seasons of transition or midlife, spend significant energy wondering about the next chapter. We ask whether we’ve done enough, become enough, or accomplished enough. Those questions are understandable, but sometimes God’s answer is surprisingly simple: pick up today’s manna first.

Faithfulness today often reveals tomorrow’s direction. The invitation is not to stop planning, but to stop living mentally in a future that has not yet arrived. We can prepare responsibly for tomorrow while remaining fully present today.

Because God’s provision is usually found not in the future we are imagining, but in the place where our feet are planted right now.

PRAYER

Lord, help me receive today’s manna. Keep me from living in a future that does not yet exist. Give me wisdom to plan, courage to trust, and eyes to see the people and purposes you have placed right in front of me. Teach me to be fully present where my feet are planted and fully dependent on you for what comes next! Amen.

Lyn Watson
Pastor, People & Culture

Resources:

Watch Do Not Worry by Senior Pastor Marty Grubbs.

Listen to Be Where Your Feet Are by Christy Nockels.

Read The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry by John Mark Comer.

Read The Life You’ve Always Wanted: Spiritual Disciplines for Ordinary People by John Ortberg.

Explore other devotions like this one any time at crossings.church/devotions .