A few years ago, my role at work changed dramatically, almost overnight.

To make a very long story short, one of my colleagues resigned from a leadership position to work for another organization, another colleague stepped into that role, and I suddenly found myself doing my job in addition to the one that had been left vacant. There just wasn’t anyone else who could step in. My boss had also recently resigned, so hiring wasn’t even possible for the foreseeable future. I assumed this would be a temporary situation, but it wasn’t.

Three months went by before there was any discussion about hiring help, changing job descriptions, or adjusting salaries. I was the one who initiated the conversation, but it ultimately happened with people who had no authority to make any changes. I ended up doing the work of two positions under one title and one salary for the next nine months. It was one of the most stressful seasons of my career.

I think the situation was probably more complicated than I understood at the time. From conversations I had and things I overheard, my impression was that it wasn’t one single issue, but a combination of clashing personalities, communication breakdowns, shifting expectations, and leadership challenges. Some people may not have felt heard, supported, or valued in the ways they wanted, while others were just trying to lead through circumstances they weren’t fully prepared for. I wasn’t involved in those conversations, so I can’t say exactly what happened. I just know that the turnover left those of us who remained to carry a pretty heavy workload.

One thing I did eventually learn was that some people left because they felt overlooked and under-appreciated. I understand that recognition in the workplace matters greatly to some people, I just view work differently. I have never expected frequent praise or affirmation for doing what I was hired to do. In my mind, my responsibility was to do the work I had been given and in return I received the paycheck and benefits that were agreed upon. That perspective was probably one of the reasons I stayed through a season that might have led someone else to leave.

For a while, I still really wanted more solid answers that I knew I was probably never going to get. I eventually realized that not everything is my business, and not everyone values transparency the way that I do. So I stopped chasing answers and instead focused on being faithful in the season God had put me in. That didn’t make the work any less demanding, but my prayer did shift from asking God to remove the burden to asking Him to help me carry it well.

Around that same time, I began praying two very specific prayers. One was for guidance on how to better serve the kingdom in my personal and professional life. The other was for some relief from the financial pressure our family was experiencing at the time. In that, I wasn’t asking to become wealthy or for a luxurious lifestyle. I was simply asking God to create more margin in our budget, whether it be by increasing our income or reducing our expenses. I wanted to be a wise steward of what I already had without constantly feeling like I was trying to catch up.

Four months later, I was unexpectedly offered a job I hadn’t pursued or even applied for. The opportunity seemingly came out of nowhere and included a significant pay increase in addition to our monthly health insurance premium dropping to one fifth of what we had been paying.

I could say I was shocked, but I really wasn’t. Not because I expected that specific outcome, but because I had already seen God answer enough prayers in remarkably specific and timely ways that I recognized His work. This wasn’t the first time God provided in a way I never could have orchestrated myself, and I know it won’t be the last.

I didn’t accept the offer right away. I had plenty of time to think and pray about it because the position wasn’t available immediately. The last thing I wanted to do was leave a job God wanted me to stay in just because another one offered more money. I wrestled with my decision for several months before I accepted the offer.

This experience changed the way I read something Jesus taught His disciples to pray: “Give us this day our daily bread.”

I’ve read and prayed these words countless times, but I don’t think I truly appreciated them until recently. Jesus didn’t teach us to pray for a lifetime supply of bread. He taught us to ask for today’s bread. Just enough for today so that we’ll trust Him again tomorrow.

That is a difficult thing to do because we naturally crave certainty. We want to have enough money that unexpected expenses won’t stress us out, and enough security that we’ll never have to depend on anyone else.

While there is wisdom in preparing for the future (scripture encourages good stewardship in every area of our lives) there is also a difference between preparing wisely and letting our peace depend on how much we can accumulate. I know how easily a desire for enough can become a desire for more. I fight my scarcity mentality daily. The irony though, is that no amount of money could ever eliminate uncertainty.

I can see now that God gave me exactly what I needed, even when it wasn’t what I wanted. At first, what I needed wasn’t a new job. It was perseverance, humility, and the opportunity to discover that I was capable of more than I thought. Later, what I needed was a new opportunity, and in His timing that’s what He provided.

Sometimes God’s provision looks like a blessing and sometimes it looks like a burden before the blessing arrives. Both can be forms of daily bread.

I’m still learning that God’s provision doesn’t always look the way I expect it to. Sometimes He changes our circumstances and sometimes He changes us while we wait. Either way, He is providing exactly what we need.