A Prayer for When There's Not Enough Money to Pay the Bills
by Audrey Elledge & Elizabeth Moore
Many of us are familiar with that sinking feeling: rent is due, groceries need to be purchased, car expenses arise. We check our bank accounts again and watch the numbers drop as our hearts do the same. Will I always live paycheck to paycheck? Will money always be at the top of my mind? Does God even care about this?
When fear for our finances overtakes us, we may feel ashamed to share our struggle with others. Even with God. But there is nothing too big or small, too overwhelming or ordinary, that we can’t offer to the Lord in prayer. When money is tight, honesty is the best posture we can take when approaching Him, especially since He already knows what we need before we ask (Matthew 6:8).
A few years ago, I (Elizabeth) worked a smorgasbord of part-time jobs. On one hand, I gained a wealth of experience exploring multiple professional fields at once, but the gig-lifestyle made my life a financial roller coaster. I didn’t know how much money I was going to make in a given month. Although I had targets and goals for myself, gigs would fall through, invoices would get paid late, and I would be left staring woefully at my plummeting bank account.
I found myself in this sweet but scary space of extreme prayerfulness and utter dependence on God. I brought every bill, every grocery run, every rent check to Him with urgency.
This much, Lord! I need this much. Where is it going to come from?
I huddled up with God before every non-essential purchase and we would decide together if this was the best use of our money.
Do I need this pair of shoes? That brand of yogurt? Is this trip a good investment?
I not only learned to depend on God financially, but I learned what I truly valued and felt empowered to spend my money wisely.
I also lived one day at a time. I articulated my specific needs when fear would arise, and I watched in awe as new clients would pop up, invoices would be paid just in time, and generous people would reach out with gifts, work, or words of encouragement. I was a walking bundle of need and gratitude.
I’m not sure how it happened, but somehow there was always enough. Though there was plenty of discomfort, I had a deep sense that God cared about me and wanted to provide. Month after month, prayer taught me that I was not living this unpredictable life alone. I learned to trust God with every one of my concerns and to wait expectantly for Him to creatively provide. This time of dependency built a firm foundation of intimacy with God that I still stand on today, and though it was my season of greatest need it was also my season of deepest joy.
If you are in a season where your need seems too overwhelming to bear alone, here is a prayer that puts into words what may feel difficult or even inexpressible in your conversations with the Lord about money. Feel free to take these words and repeat them at the start of your day, at the end of your day, or any time you need hope in the midst of financial uncertainty:
A Liturgy for Paying Bills When There’s Not Enough Money
Jehovah Jireh,
I am struggling to trust that you will provide.
As I spend every paycheck on necessities for myself and my family,
I am constantly aware of how much I lack.
As I look at what I have versus what I owe,
I don’t see how there will ever be enough.
My instinct is to double down on worry,
to take matters into my own hands and be greedy with every dollar.
Even now, Oh Lord, let me look for ways to be generous,
let me expect you to provide,
let me be a good steward of the little that I have
so that I may be trusted with sacred riches.
You are the God who nourished the Israelites in the wilderness,
who turned water into wine,
who fed five thousand with a handful of loaves and fish.
We tell ourselves these stories of your kindness,
to remember that You are an abundant provider.
You may not always give in the way that we ask,
but you will always provide exactly what we need,
for even when we are faithless, you remain faithful.
So when our minds begin to spiral into worry,
and when it looks like, this time, our ends will not meet,
may we cling to your promise that there will always be enough.
Our oil will not run out.
Our wells will not run dry.
We boldly ask you for provision, Lord,
and we hold you to Your promises.
May we entrust our lives, our bills, and our bank accounts to you.
May we commit our salaries, our investments, and our assets to your care.
All of it is Yours, Lord, given to us to steward temporarily.
We do not worship our wealth,
nor do we despair at poverty.
Rather we draw near to You.
We look to the sparrows for guidance.
We consider the lilies for advice.
They do not needlessly toil or worry beyond what they can see.
We lift up our eyes to soaring hills,
from where does our help come?
Our help comes from our Father,
who lavishes the unsearchable riches of Christ.
Give us the faith, O God, to trust You for what we do not have.
Give us cheerful hearts of generosity, even if our contributions seem meager.
Give us riches that don’t run out, and hearts that rejoice over treasure in heaven.
Give us lightened loads, so we may carry on with simple, joy-filled lives.
Hear us as we cry,
Make us like the sparrows, God! Dress us like the lilies!
Our hearts are stilled by Your reply,
Oh my children, how much more you are to me than they.
AUDREY ELLEDGE AND ELIZABETH MOORE
Audrey Elledge and Elizabeth Moore are the authors of Liturgies for Hope: Sixty Prayers for the Highs, the Lows, and Everything in Between.
Audrey Elledge lives in New York, where she works at SparkNotes and serves at Church of the City New York. Audrey is the recipient of the Academy of American Poets Prize and the Virginia Beall Ball Prize.
Born and raised in Louisiana, Elizabeth Moore now lives in New York, where she works at Penguin Random House and serves with the Church of the City New York creative team. Follow her writing at www.elizabethmoorewriting.com or on Instagram @elizabethjmoore.
