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Should Christians Pray Before Meals? What Does the Bible Say?

  • Daniel Darling Director, Land Center for Cultural Engagement
  • Published Jul 06, 2023

The relationship between prayer and eating is further enforced in the New Testament. In every case the Lord Jesus is shown eating or feeding people, He blesses the food, and expressing gratitude to the Father before, and sometimes after, the meal is a part of that blessing. Some examples of Jesus blessing and giving thanks around meals include:

Feeding the 5,000: Matthew 14:19 “And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.”

The Last Supper: Luke 22:17-19 “ After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, ‘Take this and divide it among you.  For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.’  And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’”

Beyond the example of the Lord Jesus, there are verses in both the Old and New Testaments that encourage giving thanks to God in all things, which would include being thankful for meals.

Photo Credit: ©GettyImages/SARINYAPINNGAM

Daniel Darling is the Director of the Land Center for Cultural Engagement. He previously served as the Senior VP for Communications at National Religious Broadcasters (NRB) and VP of Communications for the ERLC. You can find more from Dan at DanielDarling.com.

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