The Rosary in a Year (with Fr. Mark-Mary Ames)

Episode: Day 13: Daily Bread
Date: January 13, 2026
Host: Fr. Mark-Mary Ames
Producer: Ascension

Episode Overview

This episode centers on understanding the Lord’s Prayer petition “Give us this day our daily bread.” Fr. Mark-Mary explores its biblical roots and spiritual significance, highlighting how God provides what we need each day, both in material and spiritual terms. He encourages listeners to cultivate daily prayer as the way to receive this “daily bread,” emphasizing trust in God’s present grace rather than anxiety about the future.

Key Discussion Points

1. Biblical Foundations: Daily Bread in Exodus

• Exodus 16: Fr. Mark-Mary recalls the story of manna in the desert, where God provided daily sustenance for the Israelites as they journeyed out of slavery toward the promised land.
• Each family was instructed to gather just enough manna for their daily needs—no more, no less.
• “He that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack. Each gathered according to what he could eat. And Moses said to them, let no man leave any of it till morning.” [01:42]

Insight:

• God provided exactly what was needed each day. Taking more led to waste; taking less never meant lack.
• This experience prefigures a spiritual principle fulfilled in Christ.

2. Teachings of Jesus: Trust and the Present Moment

• Gospel of Matthew, Sermon on the Mount (Ch. 6): Jesus instructs, “Do not be anxious about your life...” [04:21]
• He invites listeners to notice how God cares for the birds and fields and assures us that God’s care for us is even greater.

Notable Quote:

• “Therefore, do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Let the day’s own trouble be sufficient for the day.” [05:24]

Insight:

• Jesus offers grace for today—not tomorrow or next week. We are called to trust Him in the present, each day at a time.
• The Christian journey is not merely an outward transition but an “internal journey from the slavery of our own sin to the total freedom of being sons and daughters of God.” [06:12]
• Trust is not in changing circumstances, but in a Person—namely, God.

Memorable Line:

• “Our trust is not in circumstances. Our trust is in a person. Our trust is in God. And Jesus is in the present moment.” [07:10]

3. The Spiritual Meaning of Daily Bread

• The daily bread we ask for is not just food, but particularly “the life of grace in us, the theological virtues of faith, hope, and charity,” which bear fruit in all virtues. [07:45]
• God gives us “the grace to persevere in the suffering today, the grace to carry our daily cross today, the grace to be generous and joyful today.” [08:03]

4. Gathering Daily Bread: The Importance of Daily Prayer

• Drawing a parallel to the Israelites gathering manna, Fr. Mark-Mary explains that we must “go each day again and gather [our] daily bread.” [09:00]
• For Christians, this means coming to God each day in personal prayer to receive the grace allotted for that day.

Encouragement:

• “The grace is there, it's being offered generously. It's overflowing. But we need to come to the Lord and receive our daily bread through our own personal prayer life and each and every day.” [09:24]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “I'm giving you the grace for today. I'm giving you what you need for today.... I haven't promised to give you what you need for tomorrow or next week or the next month. But I've promised to give you what you need for today.”
  — Fr. Mark-Mary [06:34]

• “He who has created you, he who has called you, he who is giving you what you need for today to be faithful, to persevere—he's not going to abandon you tomorrow and he's not going to abandon you next week.”
  — Fr. Mark-Mary [07:01]

• “The daily going to gather the daily bread is daily prayer.”
  — Fr. Mark-Mary [09:04]

Segment Timestamps

• 00:00–01:20 — Introduction, resources, and setting the theme
• 01:21–04:00 — Biblical reading: Manna in Exodus
• 04:01–06:00 — Matthew’s Gospel: Teachings of Jesus on daily needs
• 06:01–08:15 — Application to Christian life: Trust, grace for today
• 08:16–09:24 — Gathering daily bread through prayer
• 09:25–End — Closing prayer: Our Father, Hail Marys, Glory Be, and farewell

Takeaways for Listeners

• God gives you what you need for today—so focus on daily trust and present grace.
• “Daily bread” is not just physical sustenance but the spiritual nourishment and grace necessary to live and grow in faith, hope, and love each day.
• Like the Israelites with manna, we access this grace through consistent daily prayer.

Tone and Style

Fr. Mark-Mary’s tone is pastoral, gentle, and reassuring, blending biblical teaching with practical encouragement. He speaks with warmth and simplicity, making the spiritual insights accessible and motivating.

Final Blessing

• Fr. Mark-Mary leads listeners in prayer for daily bread and invites them to meet God in prayer each day.
• He warmly encourages everyone as “pilgrims” on this spiritual journey, trusting that God will “give us this day our daily bread.”