Colossians 3:9 Never lie to one another; because you have stripped away the old self, with its ways, 10 and have put on the new self, which is continually being renewed in fuller and fuller knowledge, closer and closer to the image of its Creator. 11 The new self allows no room for discriminating between Gentile and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, foreigner, savage, slave, free man; on the contrary, in all, the Messiah is everything.
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with feelings of compassion and with kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with one another; if anyone has a complaint against someone else, forgive him. Indeed, just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must forgive.
14 Above all these, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together perfectly; 15 and let the shalom which comes from the Messiah be your heart’s decision-maker, for this is why you were called to be part of a single Body.
And be thankful — 16 let the Word of the Messiah, in all its richness, live in you, as you teach and counsel each other in all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude to God in your hearts.
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God offers us a new nature that changes the ways we relate for the better. God can help us relate to all the people we worship with, rub elbows with, see at the market or pass as we walk the dog with “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” This letter calls us to forgive one another the same way God has forgiven us. That may be hard when you need to forgive someone else—but what a blessing it is when someone else extends that treatment to you!
• This is pretty radical language: take off the “old human nature,” put on a “new nature.” Can you see elements of your “old nature” that you and God are in the process of “taking off”? Which of the beautiful “new nature” qualities named in these verses do you see thriving? Which ones do you want to ask God to grow in your life in the next six months?
• “Autoimmune” diseases happen when our body “turns against” itself. They can cause a
great deal of suffering. Colossians said we need to live in peace because we are members
of one body, the body of Christ. What steps can you take to make sure you aren’t the
source of any “autoimmune” problems in Christ’s body?
Prayer: Holy Spirit, I’ve learned the hard way that even when I manage to change an outward behavior, too often the inner struggle remains. Keep changing and growing me from the inside out. Amen.
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Insights from Ginger Rothhaas
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with feelings of compassion and with kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. 13 Bear with one another; if anyone has a complaint against someone else, forgive him. Indeed, just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must forgive.
14 Above all these, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together perfectly; 15 and let the shalom which comes from the Messiah be your heart’s decision-maker, for this is why you were called to be part of a single Body.
And be thankful — 16 let the Word of the Messiah, in all its richness, live in you, as you teach and counsel each other in all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude to God in your hearts.
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God offers us a new nature that changes the ways we relate for the better. God can help us relate to all the people we worship with, rub elbows with, see at the market or pass as we walk the dog with “compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.” This letter calls us to forgive one another the same way God has forgiven us. That may be hard when you need to forgive someone else—but what a blessing it is when someone else extends that treatment to you!
• This is pretty radical language: take off the “old human nature,” put on a “new nature.” Can you see elements of your “old nature” that you and God are in the process of “taking off”? Which of the beautiful “new nature” qualities named in these verses do you see thriving? Which ones do you want to ask God to grow in your life in the next six months?
• “Autoimmune” diseases happen when our body “turns against” itself. They can cause a
great deal of suffering. Colossians said we need to live in peace because we are members
of one body, the body of Christ. What steps can you take to make sure you aren’t the
source of any “autoimmune” problems in Christ’s body?
Prayer: Holy Spirit, I’ve learned the hard way that even when I manage to change an outward behavior, too often the inner struggle remains. Keep changing and growing me from the inside out. Amen.
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Insights from Ginger Rothhaas
Ginger Rothhaas is a seminary student at Saint Paul School of Theology and is serving in Congregational Care at The Church of the Resurrection.Sometimes, for me, reading the Bible is reading an epic story of God interacting with humans. Other times it reads like a manifesto for how to live a good life. Today’s Scripture in the GPS spoke strongly to me as a manifesto for the good life.
Here is a list of instructions I pulled from this section of Paul’s letter to the Colossians:
- don’t lie
- put on compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience
- be tolerant
- forgive
- put on love
- have a peaceful heart
- be thankful
- teach and warn with wisdom
- sing with gratitude
Create something to remind you of how you can achieve a good life for yourself and be a blessing to those you encounter. You could create a personal manifesto to live by, a family mission statement, a morning prayer, a daily checklist in your calendar, a visual reminder you post at your desk, or a bedtime review of the day. You could copy and paste this list to the home screen on your computer or phone, or handwrite a few of these points on a post it and stick it on your mirror. The possibilities are endless.
I would love to see what you come up with, and which of these resonate with you the most. Send a quick email to ginger.rothhaas@cor.org and share your insights with me! Sending you love and creativity toward living fully into the good life!-------
"Living in love—the good life at all times"
Saturday, 29 October 2016
1 John 4:7 Beloved friends, let us love one another; because love is from God; and everyone who loves has God as his Father and knows God. 8 Those who do not love, do not know God; because God is love. 9 Here is how God showed his love among us: God sent his only Son into the world, so that through him we might have life. 10 Here is what love is: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the kapparah for our sins.
11 Beloved friends, if this is how God loved us, we likewise ought to love one another.
2 Corinthians 4:8 We have all kinds of troubles, but we are not crushed; we are perplexed, yet not in despair; 9 persecuted, yet not abandoned; knocked down, yet not destroyed.
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Loving God and other people is much more than just being “nice.” Loving one another (both in giving and receiving) aligns us, like nothing else, with the heart of the God of the universe. God loves us, John wrote—and that is the reason that we can love God and one another. The apostle Paul drew on a theme from Scripture passages like Psalm 13:5-6 and Psalm 40:1-2. God’s loving presence, he affirmed, makes it possible for us to experience the good life even amid circumstances which, from a human perspective alone, might look like a terrible life.
• Most of us know the words: “God is love.” But are there life experiences and inner
messages that make it hard for you to rely on God’s love? In what ways do you perceive
and experience God as loving? What helps you trust God’s love more? Which people do
you find it hardest to love as God loves them? In what ways has God’s love, and the love of other people you know, helped you to keep living the good life even at times of trouble, confusion, harassment or being knocked down by life?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, you are the ultimate source of love, and the awe-inspiring model who shows me the lengths to which love went to reach me. Keep growing my ability to love you and others, to lead the truly good life in all circumstances. Amen.
Family Activity: Read Luke 21:1-4[Luke 21:1 Then Yeshua looked up, and as he watched the rich placing their gifts into the Temple offering-boxes, 2 he also saw a poor widow put in two small coins. 3 He said, “I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put in more than all the others. 4 For they, out of their wealth, have contributed money they could easily spare; but she, out of her poverty, has given all she had to live on.”]. Discuss how the widow gave all she had, and that even though people didn’t view it as much, God viewed her heart and saw her giving everything she had! Over the next few weeks, become more of a giving family. Select a container to be used as a “Kindness Counts” collection spot. Let your children know that every time you hear them say, “Thank you!” or each time they are kind to someone else, you will place a coin in the container. Each week, use half the collected change for a fun family treat and give the other half to church or to missions. Thank God for the opportunity to give.
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Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
Prayer Requests – request cards are in the attendance notebooks or visit cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
• Claudia Fuleihan and family on the death of her father Alberto Castelblanco, 10/18
• Brenda Ludeen and family on the death of her father Ron Halverson, 10/16
• Charlene Perry and family on the death of her father Raymond Karel, 10/14
• Don Lewis and family on the death of his wife Nancy Lewis, 10/12
• Chris Hammond and family on the death of his mother Yosene Hammond, 10/11
• Larry Anderson and family on the death of his father John Anderson, 10/11
• Sue Spencer and family on the death of her mother Martha Thimmel, 10/11
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224, United States
913.897.0120
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