The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Wednesday, 29 June 2016 - "We must listen to the Master"

The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Wednesday, 29 June 2016 - "We must listen to the Master"
Daily Scripture: Luke 9:28 About a week after Yeshua said these things, he took Kefa, Yochanan and Ya‘akov with him and went up to the hill country to pray. 29 As he was praying, the appearance of his face changed; and his clothing became gleaming white. 30 Suddenly there were two men talking with him — Moshe and Eliyahu! 31 They appeared in glorious splendor and spoke of his exodus, which he was soon to accomplish in Yerushalayim. 32 Kefa and those with him had been sound asleep; but on becoming fully awake, they saw his glory and the two men standing with him. 33 As the men were leaving Yeshua, Kefa said to him, not knowing what he was saying, “It’s good that we’re here, Rabbi! Let’s put up three shelters — one for you, one for Moshe and one for Eliyahu.” 34 As he spoke, a cloud came and enveloped them. They were frightened as they entered the cloud; 35 and a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my Son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him!” 36 When the voice spoke, Yeshua was alone once more. They kept quiet — at that time they told no one anything of what they had seen.
Reflection Questions:
“There are times when even the best manager is like the little boy with the big dog—waiting to see where the dog wants to go so he can take him there.”[Lee Iacocca (Former CEO of Chrysler)]
Our dogs may not always “get down” the moment we tell them to, or instantly stop sniffing at the fascinating scent on their walk. But for their own safety, and that of others, there are times when dogs really need to listen to and obey their master. In the dramatic event in today’s Scripture (which we often call “the transfiguration”) God identified Jesus as God’s son. There followed the command, “Listen to him!”

• The amazing change the disciples saw in Jesus' physical appearance pointed strongly to him being more than just one more teacher. But, as though to leave no doubt, God’s voice said of Jesus, “This is my Son, my chosen one. Listen to him!” What does it mean for you to listen to Jesus today? How willing are you to actually do it?
• Can you recall a “mountaintop experience” you’ve had with God? In what ways did that experience stay with you when it was necessary to leave the “mountaintop” and go back to everyday life? In what ways does what you “hear” from God in the intense spiritual high moments shape the way you live your life day-to-day?

Today’s Prayer:
Lord Jesus, keep my spiritual ears always attuned to listen to you. Help me not only to listen, but to obey you in the ways of living to which you call me. Amen.
-------Insights from Wendy Connelly

Wendy Connelly, wife to Mark and mom to two kids, is Community Outreach Director at the Leawood campus, a seminary student at Saint Paul School of Theology, and co-leads “Live and Let Think” dialogues at Leawood and RezDowntown.
Mountaintop experiences in life are few and far between, and when they break through the mundane, we have a tendency to want to grasp onto them and hold on for dear life. So it was with Jesus’ disciples at his Transfiguration. “We should construct three shrines,” said Peter, in an attempt to petrify this beguiling experience in stone. If only the transcendent could be so easily grasped!

Exactly three weeks ago, I was amidst the mountaintop dwellings of ancient hermits and modern-day monks. For millennia, mystics have climbed the higgledy-piggledy, cave-dotted peaks of Meteora, Greece, seeking God. Some stayed and built shrines, arguably the most glorious monasteries on Earth. As my kids, husband and I explored musty caves and cliff-clinging dwellings through fierce storms and sweeping rainbows, I was tempted, like Peter, to build a shrine to that magical day spent with the people I love most, and bottle it all up. Life, sometimes, is simply that beautiful.

Our GPS guide asks how these mountaintop experiences can stay with us, and for this answer, I look to Mary. What did she do, after an angelic encounter? She treasured it up in her heart. Mary didn’t enshrine. She savored.
Psychologists tell us savoring boosts our happiness in three ways. According to The Happiness Journey, written by my friends, Bob & Virginia Pothier, savoring:

• 1) Reinforces our sense of identity
• 2) Boosts our self-image, and
• 3) Generates pleasure 1

So the next time you scale the peaks, instead of building a shrine, I’d suggest treasuring up the experience – savoring it – until it seeps into the very depths of your being. You won’t grasp the transcendent; but the transcendent might just seize you with lingering joy!
1 Pothier, Bob & Virginia. The Happiness Journey. Hapacus, 2012.

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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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