Panem Nostrum (Our Daily Bread)

[Intro – low drone, soft sound of wind through wheat] Panem nostrum quotidianum Da nobis hodie (Matthew 6:11) [Verse 1 – finger-picked, gentle as dawn] I wake with empty hands again No storehouse, no reserve Only the promise of this day And the quiet word You serve Not for tomorrow’s anxious hoard Not for the wealth I crave But bread enough to keep me breathing Till the night becomes the grave [Pre-chorus – monk choir, rising] Panem nostrum quotidianum Non in crastinum solliciti Give us this day our daily bread Do not be anxious about tomorrow (Matthew 6:11) [Chorus – warm, steady] PANEM NOSTRUM Give us this day the bread we need PANEM NOSTRUM Not more, not less, but manna-seed You fed Your people in the waste You filled the ravens, filled the five Panem nostrum Keep us dependent, keep us alive (Exodus 16:4 / Matthew 6:25–26) [Verse 2 – rain on dry earth, voice lifts] Elijah by the brook received His portion from the bird The widow’s jar refused to fail Because she trusted in the word You break the bread in upper rooms You multiply the little fish And every crumb that falls from heaven Is mercy on a dish [Chorus – fuller, heartbeat drums] PANEM NOSTRUM Give us this day the bread we need PANEM NOSTRUM Teach hungry hearts where to be fed The true Bread came down from above To give His flesh for all the world (John 6:33–35) Panem nostrum We live because You live in us [Bridge – silence, then single voice] I do not live by bread alone But by every word You speak Tomorrow is already Yours Today is all I seek (Deuteronomy 8:3 / Matthew 4:4) [Final Chorus – soaring, cathedral glow] PANEM NOSTRUM One day the feast will never end PANEM NOSTRUM No hunger in the Father’s land Until that day, just give us Jesus The Living Bread, the great I AM Panem nostrum Today, tomorrow, and forever Amen. [Outro – soft wheat rustling, monk choir fading] Da nobis hodie Panem vitae Amen.