Daily Bible Verses

35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. …

Jesus woke up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased and there was a dead calm. He said to the disciples, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?”
—Mark 4:39–40 

In the midst of uncertainty and swift transition, in the midst of personal and institutional upheaval, and amid the “fightings within and fears without” that separate peoples, races, and nations, we desperately need to hear a little good news. And this passage from the fourth chapter of Mark’s Gospel, which relates how Jesus calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee, is…

17 As he was going out into the way, one ran to him, knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what shall I do that I may inherit eternal life?”

18 Jesus said to him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except one—God. 19 …

42 Jesus called them together and said, ‘You know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. 43 Not so with you. Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your…

22 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. 23 “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. 24 Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours. 25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins.” 

28 One of the teachers of the law asked Jesus, ‘Of all the commandments, which is the most important?’ 29 ‘The most important one,’ answered Jesus, ‘is this: “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one. …

Heavenly father
give us grace not to be defined by our failures in the past (both our own and our families) 
 

1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
² Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob, [who had a feud with Esau]
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers [who all hated Joseph]
³ Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, [who was raped]
Perez the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,…

Heavenly father
give us grace to continue to hope when everything is falling apart 

⁶ David was the father of Solomon, whose mother had been Uriah’s wife,
⁷ Solomon the father of Rehoboam, [who like those in bold afterwards did evil in the sight of the Lord]
Rehoboam the father of Abijah,
Abijah the father of Asa,
⁸ Asa the father of Jehoshaphat,
Jehoshaphat the father of Jehoram,
Jehoram the father of Uzziah,
⁹ …

Heavenly father
give us grace to see the bigger picture today
give us grace to see the importance of those who are marginalised by society (just as women in general and Mary in particular were).

¹² After the exile to Babylon:
Jeconiah was the father of Shealtiel,
Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel,
¹³ Zerubbabel the father of Abihud,
Abihud the father of Eliakim,
Eliakim the father of Azor,
¹⁴ Azor the father of Zadok,
Zadok the father of Akim,
Akim the father of Elihud,
¹⁵ …

Heavenly father
give us grace today to do seek to do what is right and what is kind 

¹⁸ This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about:
his mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph,
but before they came together,
she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. 
¹⁹ Because Joseph her husband was faithful to the law,
and yet did not want to expose her to public disgrace,
he had in mind to divorce her quietly.