Daily Scripture: Isaiah 60:1 “Arise, shine [Yerushalayim],
for your light has come,
the glory of Adonai
has risen over you.
2 For although darkness covers the earth
and thick darkness the peoples;
on you Adonai will rise;
over you will be seen his glory.
3 Nations will go toward your light
and kings toward your shining splendor.
Reflection Questions:This beautiful poem was probably first addressed to Israelites returning from exile in Babylon. The Jerusalem to which they returned had been sacked and burned—it was not, as they arrived, glorious. But God called the returned Israelites to be a light to others. God’s hope wasn’t just a show to watch passively. When the light shined on God’s people, it called them to “Arise! Shine!”
- The prophet did not call the Israelites to be glorious on their own. Instead, he wrote, “the Lord will shine upon you; God’s glory will appear over you.” God’s light and love is to shine through us to reach out to nations and kings. In what ways can you more fully take in God’s glory and love so that you, in turn, can let it shine out to those around you?
- Verse 2 described a situation every generation seems to face (and ours certainly does, when a small, violent minority of terrorists spread fear and death): “Darkness covers the earth and gloom the nations.” When have you faced a dark time? Were there people who shined God’s light for you by loving you at those times? In what ways? Who are the hurting people God wants to love through you right now?
Lord Jesus, when the world seems the scariest and ugliest, shine your light in and through me. In place of gloom, give me a spirit that shines, not only at Christmas but all year round. Amen.
---------------------Insights from Darren Lippe
Darren Lippe helps facilitate Journey 101 “Loving God” classes, guides a 7th-grade Sunday school class, is a member of a small group & a men’s group, and serves on the Curriculum team.Reading today’s inspiring verse, I thought we might “chat” with Dr. Silas Key a retired psychological researcher.
DL: So, tell us about your career.
Dr. Si Key: Please, call me Si. I started in a research group of the Psychology Department at a local university. It was an awesome environment as we replicated some of the classic experiments conducted by great thinkers like Hermann Rorschach & Ivan Pavlov.
DL: Pavlov. Huh. That name rings a bell.
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.) Yes, anyway. I’d say the pinnacle of my work was assisting one of the great psychologists of the 21st century…
DL: You don’t mean, Dr. Phil?
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.)…No. Abraham Maslow, famous for creating the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs.
DL: Isn’t this usually represented in the shape of a pyramid?
Dr. Si Key: Yes. I had actually advocated that he should use a rhombus, but he felt the pyramid would lend itself more easily to marketing – you know, buttons, Frisbees, & tote bags. Maslow developed his Hierarchy of Needs via the study of the habits of great minds like Albert Einstein, Jane Addams, Frederick Douglas, etc.
He felt you could predict human behavior based on how the needs of each person were being met. The base of the pyramid represented the most basic needs and the next level wouldn’t be of any importance until the lower level was first attained. You then could progress up the pyramid to self-actualization.
DL: Wow. That is impressive.
Dr. Si Key: Yes, but I had quite a row with him. I felt that the Hierarchy was a good starting point but not complete. There was something quite vital missing.
DL: My sons would agree. Wi-Fi, Internet, or Smart Phones don’t appear anywhere on the list.
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.) Um. No. Actually my contention was that the idea of hope was missing from his Hierarchy. We can live without food for 40 days, without water for 3 days, but I submit we can’t live a single day without hope. Without hope the drive for love & intimacy, for respect & esteem, for achieving our full potential becomes futile & pointless.
Throughout history we’ve seen cultures where hope does not exist. They are swamped in darkness & dread. But only God can provide a light to eradicate this gloom. Faith in Christ is still the world’s best antidote to a life of hopelessness & meaningless. As Christians, we are charged to be a beacon of light, not only for our own lives, but also for the entire world.
Interestingly, much later in life Maslow amended his thoughts on self-actualization. He came to believe that only through giving of your self to some higher goal outside oneself, via altruism & spirituality, could one achieve true self-actualization.
Oh my. I need to run.
DL: Thanks for your time. Where are you off to?
Dr. Si Key: I have to go to a conference. Hopefully it will be better than last week’s Psychoanalysis Conference in Chicago. The weather was so cold & icy. I’ve never seen so many Freudians slip.
---------------------
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
DL: So, tell us about your career.
Dr. Si Key: Please, call me Si. I started in a research group of the Psychology Department at a local university. It was an awesome environment as we replicated some of the classic experiments conducted by great thinkers like Hermann Rorschach & Ivan Pavlov.
DL: Pavlov. Huh. That name rings a bell.
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.) Yes, anyway. I’d say the pinnacle of my work was assisting one of the great psychologists of the 21st century…
DL: You don’t mean, Dr. Phil?
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.)…No. Abraham Maslow, famous for creating the Maslow Hierarchy of Needs.
DL: Isn’t this usually represented in the shape of a pyramid?
Dr. Si Key: Yes. I had actually advocated that he should use a rhombus, but he felt the pyramid would lend itself more easily to marketing – you know, buttons, Frisbees, & tote bags. Maslow developed his Hierarchy of Needs via the study of the habits of great minds like Albert Einstein, Jane Addams, Frederick Douglas, etc.
He felt you could predict human behavior based on how the needs of each person were being met. The base of the pyramid represented the most basic needs and the next level wouldn’t be of any importance until the lower level was first attained. You then could progress up the pyramid to self-actualization.
DL: Wow. That is impressive.
Dr. Si Key: Yes, but I had quite a row with him. I felt that the Hierarchy was a good starting point but not complete. There was something quite vital missing.
DL: My sons would agree. Wi-Fi, Internet, or Smart Phones don’t appear anywhere on the list.
Dr. Si Key: (Staring.) Um. No. Actually my contention was that the idea of hope was missing from his Hierarchy. We can live without food for 40 days, without water for 3 days, but I submit we can’t live a single day without hope. Without hope the drive for love & intimacy, for respect & esteem, for achieving our full potential becomes futile & pointless.
Throughout history we’ve seen cultures where hope does not exist. They are swamped in darkness & dread. But only God can provide a light to eradicate this gloom. Faith in Christ is still the world’s best antidote to a life of hopelessness & meaningless. As Christians, we are charged to be a beacon of light, not only for our own lives, but also for the entire world.
Interestingly, much later in life Maslow amended his thoughts on self-actualization. He came to believe that only through giving of your self to some higher goal outside oneself, via altruism & spirituality, could one achieve true self-actualization.
Oh my. I need to run.
DL: Thanks for your time. Where are you off to?
Dr. Si Key: I have to go to a conference. Hopefully it will be better than last week’s Psychoanalysis Conference in Chicago. The weather was so cold & icy. I’ve never seen so many Freudians slip.
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Download the GPS App
The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
13720 Roe Avenue
Leawood, Kansas 66224 United States
913.897.0120
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