Missionary Renegade: The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Tuesday, 31 May 2016

Friday, June 3, 2016

The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Tuesday, 31 May 2016 - “Do you also want to leave?”

The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States for Tuesday, 31 May 2016 - “Do you also want to leave?”
Daily Scripture: John 6:61 But Yeshua, aware that his talmidim were grumbling about this, said to them, “This is a trap for you? 62 Suppose you were to see the Son of Man going back up to where he was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life, the flesh is no help. The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life, 64 yet some among you do not trust.” (For Yeshua knew from the outset which ones would not trust him, also which one would betray him.) 65 “This,” he said, “is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the Father has made it possible for him.”

66 From this time on, many of his talmidim turned back and no longer traveled around with him. 67 So Yeshua said to the Twelve, “Don’t you want to leave too?” 68 Shim‘on Kefa answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the word of eternal life. 69 We have trusted, and we know that you are the Holy One of God.”

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Reflection Questions:
The gospel of John focused on the meaning of events in Jesus' life, not just on the outward facts. Instead of just reporting Jesus' use of bread and wine at the Last Supper, John wrote about a time when Jesus used graphic imagery to express the Supper’s meaning. Many people left Jesus because of that strong imagery (cf. John 6:48-55). It must have been painful, and Jesus asked the Twelve if they intended to leave too. Peter expressed faith—but in slightly shaken (“Where would we go?”) terms.

How can having some bread and grape juice be what John Wesley, Methodism’s founder, called a “means of grace,” a way of taking in God’s love and life, and not just a tiny snack in church? In what ways do the physical acts of eating and drinking, which Jesus used as symbols, help you to fill your inner self with Jesus' forgiving, strengthening grace and love?
Earlier in John 6, Jesus invited his listeners to consider what kind of "food" they valued most: "Don't work for the food that doesn't last but for the food that endures for eternal life" (verse 27). When he asked the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” he was inviting them to carefully ponder the spiritual consequences of their choice. How clear is your sense of the two kinds of food Jesus spoke of? In what sense(s) do you trust Jesus to be “the bread of life,” the ultimate source of consistent spiritual nourishment for your life?

Today’s Prayer:
Dear Jesus, please nurture and nourish all that is best in me. And when I start to stray, ask me through your Spirit whether I really want to leave your side. Amen.
-------Insights from Janelle Gregory

Ah, holiday weekends! Due to an out-of-town holiday trip, Nicole Alison was not able to write for today. Instead, we offer you a reflection on John 6 thatJanelle Gregory (who serves on the Resurrection staff as a Human Resources Specialist) wrote in 2013.
I grew up in the church. I was in Sunday School every week. I sang the songs, I colored the pictures, and when the class was asked a question I was the first to raise my hand. In high school I was president of my youth group, and then I became heavily involved in college ministry. I went on mission trips and retreats and I memorized scripture. I even wore the t-shirts. Yes, I was “that kid.” And as an adult, I came on staff at Church of the Resurrection.
Yet six years ago or so, the floor of my faith dropped from under me and I fell into a time where I doubted God. It’s not that I didn’t trust in God. I was struggling to believe that He even existed. It had all become too much – the stories, the miracles, the resurrection, the Holy Spirit – the whole thing. I mean seriously, when you stop to think about it, it all sounds like something right out of a fantasy movie. Throw some elf ears on the disciples, and you’ve got yourself a summer blockbuster!
So here I found myself with everything I had believed to be true, the foundation I had built my life on – it all suddenly crumbled into a pile of rubble. It was becoming apparent to me that the Bible was just made up of fictional characters and fanciful stories handed down through generations of people in need of explaining the ways of the world.
With this new understanding, I entered a very dark and lonely time. I didn’t feel like I could tell anyone. How could I? What would they think? They seemed to have it all together. Nobody else was questioning, and certainly not anyone that had been a Christian for as long as I had. How could I be so deep, so invested, and yet so lost? I went through weeks of uncertainty, weeks of going through the motions, forcing myself to play the pretend game of a believer. I would talk about God with conviction, but behind those words was a cloud of doubt.
And then the day came when I couldn’t do it any longer. I remember running into someone that asked the everyday question of, “How are you doing?” Well, the truth was that I was not doing well – not at all. Little did they know that this polite inquiry would result in me pouring my soul out, and finally coming to ask, “Is it real? Is God really real?” In a quiet assurance, this person’s response was, “Yes, He’s very real.” He then took the time to stop and pray with me. I can’t really explain it, but after that God revealed Himself to me in ways that settled my doubts.
So… what’s the point? Why am I telling you this?
Because I wish that at the time I would have known that it’s not abnormal to question God even years after deciding to follow Christ. I was so caught off guard by my lack of faith that I didn’t know how to respond. I felt that there was nowhere to turn, nobody to understand. But I can’t believe that I’m the only one that’s experienced this. After all, we read today in John 6 that even those that had heard Jesus’ words from his own mouth and saw Him with their own eyes thought that He had lost it after a while. So if those that touched Him had doubts, we shouldn’t be surprised when we have those same doubts 2,000 years later.
If you’re reading this, it’s highly unlikely that you’re experiencing a crisis of faith right now. But don’t be surprised if one day you do. My hope is that should that day come you won’t feel ashamed when you question, because you’re certainly not the first to do so. Others have been down that path, so don’t feel like you have to forge that path alone. Talk to someone – a pastor, a mentor, a friend.
Six years later, I know that I am so thankful for the people around me that support me in my faith, those that will surround me should my foundation be shaken again. And most of all I’m grateful to God for His continued love for this wandering follower.