Daily Bible Verses

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to allow the leaven of the Kingdom of Heaven to do your work in us

³³ He spoke another parable to them. “The Kingdom of Heaven is like yeast which a woman took and hid in three measures of meal, until it was all leavened.”

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to be attentive to the hidden things of the Kingdom of Heaven

³⁴ Jesus spoke all these things in parables to the multitudes; and without a parable, he didn’t speak to them, 
³⁵ that it might be fulfilled which was spoken through the prophet, saying,

“I will open my mouth in parables; I will utter things hidden from the foundation of the world.”

Jesus said, “I will speak to you in parables and reveal to you things hidden since the foundation of the world.” —Matthew 13:35, quoting Psalm 78:2  

Richard Rohr describes how Jesus uses parables to challenge our ways of thinking: 

A parable is a unique form of literature that’s always trying to subvert business as usual, much like a Zen koan or a Confucian riddle, which both use paradox to undo our reliance on what we think is logic. Yet we typically do not let parables do that for us. Our dominant consciousness is so in control that…

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to do what is right

³⁶ Then Jesus sent the multitudes away, and went into the house. His disciples came to him, saying,
“Explain to us the parable of the darnel weeds of the field.”

³⁷ He answered them, “He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, ³⁸ the field is the world, the good seeds are the children of the Kingdom, and the darnel weeds are the children of the evil one. ³⁹ The enemy who sowed them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age,…

Heavenly Father
Give us grace to seek first the Kingdom of Heaven today

⁴⁴ “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid.
In his joy, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to seek for what is finest and best today and deal with everything else appropriately.

⁴⁵ “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a merchant seeking fine pearls, 
⁴⁶ who having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to be of use in the Kingdom of Heaven. 

⁴⁷ “Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some fish of every kind, 
⁴⁸ which, when it was filled, fishermen drew up on the beach.
They sat down and gathered the good [useful] into containers, but the bad they threw away. 
⁴⁹ So will it be in the end of the world. The angels will come and separate the wicked from among the righteous, 
⁵⁰ and will cast…

Heavenly Father
Give us grace today to discover new things about the kingdom of God

⁵¹ Jesus said to them, “Have you understood all these things?”

They answered him, “Yes, Lord.”

⁵² He said to them, “Therefore every scribe who has been made a disciple in the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a householder, who brings out of his treasure new and old things.”

Heavenly father
give us grace today to listen to wisdom whoever is speaking. 

⁵³ When Jesus had finished these parables, he departed from there. 
⁵⁴ Coming into his own country, he taught them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished and said,
“Where did this man get this wisdom and these mighty works? 
⁵⁵ Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother called Mary, and his brothers James, Joses, Simon, and Judas? 
⁵⁶ Aren’t all of his sisters with us? Where then…

Heavenly father
give us grace today to discern if and when we need to speak about truth and justice 

¹ At that time, Herod the tetrarch heard the report concerning Jesus, 
² and said to his servants, “This is John the Baptizer. He is risen from the dead. That is why these powers work in him.” 
³ For Herod had arrested John, and bound him, and put him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. 
⁴ For John said to him, “It is not lawful for you to have her…

Heavenly father
give us grace today to stop us being foolish, particularly around pleasure and beauty

⁶ But when Herod’s birthday came, the daughter of Herodias danced among them and pleased Herod. 
⁷ Therefore he promised with an oath to give her whatever she should ask. 
⁸ She, being prompted by her mother, said, “Give me here on a platter the head of John the Baptizer.”
⁹ The king was grieved, but for the sake of his oaths and of those who sat at the table with him, he…

Heavenly father
give us grace today to seek you when we feel down (as Jesus did on the death of his cousin)

¹¹ His head was brought on a platter and given to the young lady; and she brought it to her mother. ¹² His disciples came, took the body, and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus. ¹³ Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place apart. When the multitudes heard it, they followed him on foot from the cities.

Heavenly father
give us grace today 

¹² His disciples came, took the body, and buried it. Then they went and told Jesus. 
¹³ Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place apart.
When the multitudes heard it, they followed him on foot from the cities.

¹⁴ Jesus went out, and he saw a great multitude. He had compassion on them and healed their sick. ¹⁵ When evening had come, his disciples came to him, saying, “This place is deserted, and the hour is…

Heavenly father
give us grace today to be compassionate

¹⁴ Jesus went out, and he saw a great multitude. He had compassion on them and healed their sick. ¹⁵ When evening had come, his disciples came to him, saying, “This place is deserted, and the hour is already late. Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages, and buy themselves food.”
¹⁶ But Jesus said to them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”

Heavenly father
give us grace today to see what resources we have and put them at your disposal

¹⁶ But Jesus said to them, “They don’t need to go away. You give them something to eat.”
¹⁷ They told him, “We only have here five loaves and two fish.”
¹⁸ He said, “Bring them here to me.” 

‘We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish,’ they answered. Matthew 14:17

Some thoughts based on Richard Rohr’s thoughts…. 

The Gospel accounts include two traditions of open table fellowship: one of bread and wine, the other of bread and fish. The bread and fish stories emphasize surplus and outside guests. At the end of each event, there are seven or twelve baskets left over. That surplus seems to be a point of this form of table…

Heavenly father
give us grace today to take what you give us today, and to share it with others  so that we may be blessed and be a blessing to others, particularly when we are feeling broken. 

¹⁹ He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass;
and he took the five loaves and the two fish,
and looking up to heaven, he blessed,
broke and
gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes. 

Heavenly father
give us grace today to  feed on the bread of heaven.

²⁰ They all ate and were filled. They took up twelve baskets full of that which remained left over from the broken pieces. 
²¹ Those who ate were about five thousand men, in addition to women and children.

Heavenly father
give us grace today to be find time to be alone with you 

²² Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. 
²³ After he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into the mountain by himself to pray. When evening had come, he was there alone. 

Heavenly father
give us grace today to not be afraid when we are in distress

²⁴ But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, distressed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 
²⁵ In the fourth watch of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea.
²⁶ When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It’s a ghost!” and they cried out for fear. 
²⁷ But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Cheer up! It is I! Don’t be…