Daily Pause

Wednesday – Isaiah 61:1-3  The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me  to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives  and release from darkness for the prisoners,   to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor and the day of vengeance of our God, to comfort all who mourn, and provide for those who g...

Tuesday – Luke 24:40-49  40 When Jesus had said this, he showed them his hands and feet. 41 And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?” 42 They gave him a piece of broiled fish, 43 and he took it and ate it in their presence. 44 He said to them, “This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfi...

John 20:19-23  19  On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”  20  After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21  Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I...

Colossians 3:12-14 12  Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  13  Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  14  And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

Matthew 24:9-14 9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. 10 At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, 11 and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. 12 Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, 13 but the one who stands firm to the...

1 Corinthians 13:4-8, 12-13 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails.  12 For now we see only...

1 John 4:13-19 13 This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. 14 And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. 15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and Go...

1 John 4:7-12 7 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as...

Romans 5:1-5 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,  2  through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the  hope  of the glory of God.  3  Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;  4  perseverance, character; and ch...

Isaiah 40:27-31 Why do you complain, Jacob?    Why do you say, Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord; my cause is disregarded by my God”? 28 Do you not know?    Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God,    the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary,    and his understanding no one can fathom. 29 He gives strength to the weary    and increases the power of th...

1 Peter 3:8-9,13 8  Finally, all of you, be like-minded, be sympathetic, love one another, be compassionate and humble.  9  Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.  14  But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. “Do not fear their threats[ b ]; do not be...

1 Peter 1: 13-21 13  So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your  hope  in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world.  14  So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then.   18  For you know that God paid a ransom to save...

1 Peter 1:1-6 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect, exiles scattered throughout the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to be obedient to Jesus Christ and sprinkled with his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance. 3 Praise be to the God an...

Jesus the Great High Priest 14  Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven,[ a ] Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess.  15  For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.  16  Let us then approach God’s throne of grace wi...

25  Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.  26  When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27  But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28  “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” 29  “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out o...

The Faith of a Canaanite Woman 21  Leaving that place, Jesus withdrew to the region of Tyre and Sidon.  22  A Canaanite woman from that vicinity came to him, crying out, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is demon-possessed and suffering terribly.” 23  Jesus did not answer a word. So his disciples came to him and urged him, “Send her away, for she keeps crying out after us.” 24  He...

12:1   Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us,  2  fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of...

Jesus Appears to Thomas 24  Now Thomas (also known as Didymus), one of the Twelve, was not with the disciples when Jesus came.  25  So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands and put my finger where the nails were, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.” 26  A week later his disciples were in the house again,...

The Resurrection of Christ 15  Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand.  2  By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. 3  For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[ a ]: that Christ died for our sins accord...

Jesus Comforts the Sisters of Lazarus 17  On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.  18  Now Bethany was less than two miles[ a ] from Jerusalem,  19  and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother.  20  When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home. 21  “Lord,” Martha sa...

Praise to God for a Living Hope 3  Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,  4  and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you,  5  who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the sal...

Jesus Appears to His Disciples 19  On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!”  20  After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. 21  Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father...

Jesus Has Risen 28  After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 2  There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.  3  His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.  4  The guards were so afraid of him that the...

Mark 15:25-39 25 It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. 26 The written notice of the charge against him read: the king of the Jews. 27 They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. [28] [ a ] 29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, 30 come down fro...

Mark 14:32-42 32  They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.”  33  He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled.  34  “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.” 35  Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if pos...