Daily Scripture: 2 Corinthians 4:16 This is why we do not lose courage. Though our outer self is heading for decay, our inner self is being renewed daily. 17 For our light and transient troubles are achieving for us an everlasting glory whose weight is beyond description. 18 We concentrate not on what is seen but on what is not seen, since things seen are temporary, but things not seen are eternal.
5:1 We know that when the tent which houses us here on earth is torn down, we have a permanent building from God, a building not made by human hands, to house us in heaven.
Reflection Questions:The apostle Paul knew firsthand about “the worst” in our world. Yet he believed, as a pastor in Frederick Buechner’s novel The Final Beast said, that “the worst isn't the last thing about the world. It's the next to the last thing. The last thing is the best….You are terribly loved and forgiven. Yes. You are healed. All is well." In Christ, we look beyond the worst to the “eternal stockpile of glory” Jesus promised.
- Would you consider the apostle Paul a success or a failure? What standards do you use to define whether you are a “success” or not? In what way(s) does this passage confirm your measures of what constitutes “winning” in life? Does it challenge you to rethink your standards of measurement and your goals in any way?
- In Romans 8:24, Paul wrote, “We were saved in hope. If we see what we hope for, that isn’t hope. Who hopes for what they already see?” In today’s verses, he talked about our focus on the things we can’t see, yet which are more enduring than what we can see. What hopes do you hold that remain out of sight right now? What steps do you take to anchor your hope in God’s goodness, and to live with patience and trust?
Today's Prayer:
Dear Jesus, so much of what you said and did seemed odd and out of step to many people. But you weren’t shortsighted. You looked beyond the obvious and visible. Give me your eyes to see, however dimly, the glory of eternity. Amen.Insights from Janelle Gregory
Dear Jesus, so much of what you said and did seemed odd and out of step to many people. But you weren’t shortsighted. You looked beyond the obvious and visible. Give me your eyes to see, however dimly, the glory of eternity. Amen.Insights from Janelle Gregory
Janelle Gregory serves on the Resurrection staff as a Human Resources Specialist.
From melting clocks to stilted elephants to furniture set up as Marilyn Monroe – the work of Salvador Dali is vast, eclectic, sometimes whacky, and never boring. A few years ago, I got to visit the Dali museum in Figueres, Spain. As I had been looking forward to it for some time, I couldn’t wait to take it all in.
I’ll never forget seeing the first piece I saw in the museum. It was an encased simple sculpture of a spiraled shape hanging on the wall with a golden tower prominently in the middle. I stood there for minutes examining this work from a great master, wondering about the story behind this creation. It looked like it could be some sort of a path, taking you deeper as you circled round and round. Maybe it was a commentary on the journey of life or about mindless apathy, sucking you in without your knowledge. The tower could have represented your decision point. Would you go down that path? I wasn’t entirely sure how to interpret it, but it definitely captured me for those first moments.
I’ll never forget seeing the first piece I saw in the museum. It was an encased simple sculpture of a spiraled shape hanging on the wall with a golden tower prominently in the middle. I stood there for minutes examining this work from a great master, wondering about the story behind this creation. It looked like it could be some sort of a path, taking you deeper as you circled round and round. Maybe it was a commentary on the journey of life or about mindless apathy, sucking you in without your knowledge. The tower could have represented your decision point. Would you go down that path? I wasn’t entirely sure how to interpret it, but it definitely captured me for those first moments.
But the beauty of that first work seemed to quickly fade when I saw that exact same sculpture just two rooms down. I thought it odd that Dali would have displayed the same piece twice. And that’s when I got a closer look at it only to discover that this “great masterpiece” was actually… a fire hose. I was shocked and horrified, knowing that I had stood there for minutes, staring into and trying to find the meaning of a fire hose. What an idiot.
In some ways it reminds me of how we tend to live our lives, trying to look solely for the richness of this world, while not recognizing that the real beauty is in the next. Without being able to see into eternity, we assume that this life is it. We grasp for significance, clinging to today, to the here and now. We put our trust in wealth, in others, in our health, in our hobbies, and our jobs – and ultimately, we’re disappointed.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that this life isn’t full of beauty and value. Certainly, it is. It’s just that when you put it up against the richness of the glory of heaven, it starts to feel a lot like looking for meaning in a fire hose.
It’s our challenge to remember this when we’re discouraged or brokenhearted. We have been promised that there is a home for us beyond this world. It is overflowing with beauty, joy, and wholeness. There is no more sorrow, only a Savior, who welcomes us into his kingdom. Like a fire hose in a hall of masterpieces, our earthly lives will pale in comparison to the abundant splendor we’ll find in heaven.
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
In some ways it reminds me of how we tend to live our lives, trying to look solely for the richness of this world, while not recognizing that the real beauty is in the next. Without being able to see into eternity, we assume that this life is it. We grasp for significance, clinging to today, to the here and now. We put our trust in wealth, in others, in our health, in our hobbies, and our jobs – and ultimately, we’re disappointed.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying that this life isn’t full of beauty and value. Certainly, it is. It’s just that when you put it up against the richness of the glory of heaven, it starts to feel a lot like looking for meaning in a fire hose.
It’s our challenge to remember this when we’re discouraged or brokenhearted. We have been promised that there is a home for us beyond this world. It is overflowing with beauty, joy, and wholeness. There is no more sorrow, only a Savior, who welcomes us into his kingdom. Like a fire hose in a hall of masterpieces, our earthly lives will pale in comparison to the abundant splendor we’ll find in heaven.
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
913.897.0120
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