Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Thursday, 5 June 2014 "Jesus' work: healing, a sign of God's presence"

Leawood, Kansas, United States - The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection Daily Guide grow. pray. study. for Thursday, 5 June 2014 "Jesus' work: healing, a sign of God's presence"
Daily Scripture: John 5:1 After these things, there was a feast of the Jews, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 2 Now in Jerusalem by the sheep gate, there is a pool, which is called in Hebrew, “Bethesda”, having five porches. 3 In these lay a great multitude of those who were sick, blind, lame, or paralyzed, waiting for the moving of the water; 4 for an angel went down at certain times into the pool, and stirred up the water. Whoever stepped in first after the stirring of the water was healed of whatever disease he had. 5 A certain man was there, who had been sick for thirty-eight years. 6 When Jesus saw him lying there, and knew that he had been sick for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to be made well?”
7 The sick man answered him, “Sir, I have no one to put me into the pool when the water is stirred up, but while I’m coming, another steps down before me.”
8 Jesus said to him, “Arise, take up your mat, and walk.”
9 Immediately, the man was made well, and took up his mat and walked.
Now it was the Sabbath on that day. 10 So the Jews said to him who was cured, “It is the Sabbath. It is not lawful for you to carry the mat.”
11 He answered them, “He who made me well, the same said to me, ‘Take up your mat, and walk.’”
12 Then they asked him, “Who is the man who said to you, ‘Take up your mat, and walk’?”
13 But he who was healed didn’t know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, a crowd being in the place.
14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “Behold, you are made well. Sin no more, so that nothing worse happens to you.”
15 The man went away, and told the Jews that it was Jesus who had made him well. 16 For this cause the Jews persecuted Jesus, and sought to kill him, because he did these things on the Sabbath. 17 But Jesus answered them, “My Father is still working, so I am working, too.”
Reflection Questions:
The Pharisees were so busy enforcing their understanding of the Sabbath command as forbidding even trivial "work" like carrying a mat, they missed a much larger point. Jesus, who said, "The Sabbath was created for humans; humans weren't created for the Sabbath" (Mark 2:27), told them that godly acts of blessing and healing were fully compatible with the Sabbath rest. God's healing, sustaining work goes on full-time.
Jesus intention in this story was not to undercut or deny the importance of the work-rest rhythm the Sabbath commandment taught. It was, though, to create a clearer sense that the rest God calls us to is not total inaction, as much as participation in the renewing, refreshing work of God. When have you been involved in an activity to bless others that left you rejuvenated and recharged for your regular routine?
There was an ironic challenge to the Pharisees when Jesus said, "My Father is still working, and I am working too." They claimed to believe God ruled all creation, and yet seemed to assume that, at least on the Sabbath, the world ran itself, with no sense of God's power at work. What helps you to remember that, even when you may not have an immediate awareness of it, your heavenly Father is still working? What difference does it make to realize that Jesus is always working alongside you?
Today's Prayer:
Almighty God, all my work is done against the backdrop of your great creating, sustaining power always at work. Thank you for your work, which makes my life and my work possible and fruitful. Amen.
Insight from Janelle Gregory
Janelle Gregory serves on the Resurrection staff as a Human Resources Specialist.
Picture yourself preparing to watch a ballet. While the lights dim in the theater and the orchestra strikes up the first note, you anticipate seeing a stage filled with dancers leaping, twirling, and doing pliés. As the curtain is drawn back, what do the dancers look like? I would imagine that they are lean, graceful, and elegant.
Like this, right?

Did any of you picture this?

Most likely not. This is Steve McLendon, nose tackle for the Pittsburg Steelers and wait for it… ballet dancer. Yep, that’s right. All 320 pounds of McLendon spends hours prancing, doing arabesques and chassés. Why? He has no ambitions of making ballet a career path. And it’s not because he has nothing better to do in his spare time.
McLendon, like many other professional athletes, takes ballet because it makes him a better football player. The conditioning he’s received in ballet gives him more agility and flexibility, while strengthening his knees and ankles. This secondary role as a ballet dancer enhances his primary role in the NFL.
I’ve often thought about how being a Christian might strengthen the different roles in my life. As I work in Human Resources, I try to remember what I’ve learned from a God of justice and mercy. At home, I hope that I’m a better wife because of God’s desire for me to love my husband as the Church loves Christ. I’ve found that my role as a mom has been uniquely and beautifully touched because of the heart that God has for his own adopted children. And I don’t always get it right, but I try to bring the forgiveness of our Redeemer, the hope of our Savior, and the generosity of our ever-giving God to all of the relationships in my life. Simply put, being a Christian, makes me better at everything I do.
I think many of us can say that we find our role as Christians has enhanced how we go about working and interacting with others. And while this can be a very good thing, I’m wondering what would happen if we flipped that perspective. Because at the end of the day, being a mom, an employee, or a wife isn’t my main role. My main role is of one who follows Christ.
So just as the professional athlete uses ballet to play better football, what if we used our job (paid or unpaid) to make us better in our most essential role? If we are striving to find ourselves closer to the heart of Jesus, how might we bring words of healing in strained relationships at work? What if our desire to build others up could be strengthened by encouraging emails to the person in the office down the hall? What if we wanted to learn more about what it meant to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, so we treated each customer as we would want to be treated?
The difference in outcomes of using Christianity to be a better employee versus using work to be a better Christian is subtle, but I personally find one to be more life-giving than the other. Jobs and other roles tend to come, go, or morph as the years go by, but our role as a child of God will be constant even after we leave this earth. That’s where we should be spending our energy. So whether our days are filled processing paperwork, driving a bus, picking up toys, trading stocks, or even dancing in the ballet, the ways in which we go about doing so can strengthen our faith, bring us closer to Christ, and make us better in this most essential role.
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