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Did you grow up saying a short prayer or blessing before you were allowed to eat? Many preschools teach this before lunch or snack and parents often continue it at home. Or you may have just bowed your head when someone mentions “blessing the food”. Most people have at least heard of this. I wanted to explore where this idea came from as there seem to be many variations and practices of “Saying Grace.” I was surprised by some of the information I found.

Saying Grace and blessing your food are synonymous. Most people bow their heads or close their eyes as if in prayer. Some give thanks for the food and others ask blessing of the food for it to nourish them. Others say full blown prayers prior to eating. Regardless, the purpose is typically the same. You are thankful for the food placed before you and hope that it nourishes you. (read about taking your family to church at:

In doing some research, I found that this has been a custom for thousands of years. The Bible has many verses of Jesus saying grace before breaking bread.

John 6:11 Jesus then took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated. So also the fish, as much as they wanted

Matthew 26:26 Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, “Take, eat; this is my body.”

Matthew 14:19 Then he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass, and taking the five loaves and the two fish, he looked up to heaven and said a blessing. Then he broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the crowds.

The difference I found was in the actual purpose of the Grace from biblical times to now.

Genesis 1:28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

All Things Are Good Through God

God made Heaven and Earth. He made man and all animals on the Earth. He made all of this holy and perfect. He commands us in Genesis 1:28 to rule over all of the land and everything in it and to eat to our hearts content. Why then do we ask for our food to be blessed. God has already blessed the food and made it holy and clean for us.

Now as humans, we have learned to process and preserve our food. We have even added contaminants to our food so the manufacturer can make more money, but God has blessed our food none the less. (This does not mean that you should eat anything and everything you want. God also says to treat your body as a temple to honor him, therefore we should treat it with the utmost care and this includes what we put in it!)

What I think God wants us to do is moreso to give thanks for the food that he has provided. Remember, all things are provided to us by God’s Grace, not just our hard work. God wants us to worship him and acknowledge that he is our provider. He provides us the strength and opportunity to work and earn our food. When we submit to him and his will, he provides those opportunities even more abundantly. When we pray to him and give thanks consistently, we also learn to appreciate the things we are blessed with and ultimately learn to want less.

So you see, God wants us to recognize his place and contributions to our lives. He created us and sustains our life through every cell in our body. He provides the nourishment we need for our bodies and he wants us to thank him for it.

Now, I am sure he hears our asking for blessing of the food because it is good to want to nourish our bodies but the next time you sit down to eat, remember to give thanks to the ultimate provider! (We also give thanks to the preparer and thank God for them and their blessings to us as well!)

How do you say Grace? Do you agree with this message?

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Want to learn more about what the bible says? Check out churchsource.com for lots of resources.