The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States "Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward or disregard?" for Friday, 25 November 2016

[Material in this GPS is mainly drawn, or slightly adapted, from The Wesley Challenge: 21 Days to a More Authentic Faith, by Chris Folmsbee, to be published by Abingdon Press in March, 2017.]
The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States "Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward or

disregard?" for Friday, 25 November 2016
1 Corinthians 13:4 Love is patient and kind, not jealous, not boastful,
5 not proud, rude or selfish, not easily angered,
and it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not gloat over other people’s sins
but takes its delight in the truth.
7 Love always bears up, always trusts,
always hopes, always endures.
8 Love never ends; but prophecies will pass,
tongues will cease, knowledge will pass
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Today’s question covers a lot of ground. Taking into account the people we fear, those we feel disdain or indifference towards, and the people we resent can add up to a few people, or for some of us, many. We cannot fully live the Christian life, as Jesus meant us to, until we are at peace not only with God and our self, but also with others.
• Have you created or kept separation between yourself and another person because you
simply don’t like them? If so, ask yourself what is driving this dislike. More broadly, would you say you are at peace with God, self and others? Why or why not?
• Read Romans 12:9-17[Romans 12:9 Don’t let love be a mere outward show. Recoil from what is evil, and cling to what is good. 10 Love each other devotedly and with brotherly love; and set examples for each other in showing respect. 11 Don’t be lazy when hard work is needed, but serve the Lord with spiritual fervor. 12 Rejoice in your hope, be patient in your troubles, and continue steadfastly in prayer. 13 Share what you have with God’s people, and practice hospitality.
14 Bless those who persecute you — bless them, don’t curse them! 15 Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep. 16 Be sensitive to each other’s needs — don’t think yourselves better than others, but make humble people your friends. Don’t be conceited. 17 Repay no one evil for evil, but try to do what everyone regards as good.] (aloud if possible). Reflect on how living out those Scriptural principles can produce a positive response to today’s question. As first steps, sometime in the next week, if the occasion presents itself, speak with a person who “rubs you the wrong way.” Find a moment today to say something kind to someone you dislike or have intentionally steered clear of.
Prayer: Lord, change me. Replace comparison with compassion in my heart and mind, and
make me more like Christ is—loving to all. 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.
Holidays can be the time of year when we are filled with joy, but it can also be a time where we find ourselves striving to meet unreasonable expectations, frustrated with family members, feeling disappointed, and experiencing financial stress.
John Wesley offered 21 examen questions to his fellows at Oxford for reconciling their spirituality. I wonder if there were asterisks next to the questions that were especially helpful to keep in mind around the holidays?!?!
Today’s question might have a holiday asterisk: Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward or disregard? Heading into a family event sometimes brings up old feelings of angst.
We all know that joy is found when we are free from feelings of fear, dislike, criticism, and resentment. And yet we struggle to let go of these feelings. Peace comes when we surrender our judgments of others and open our hearts to love unconditionally.
Think of a person you aren’t feeling great about right now and reflect on these questions:

• What is there about this person to be grateful for?
• What good does God see in this person?
• Why am I struggling to like them?
• What is it I can’t let go of?
• What am I afraid of in this relationship?
• Am I doing something to cause them to act this way?
• Do they need grace and love from me?
• Do I need to ask them to show me grace and love?
• Is there something they are teaching me about myself?
• What needs to happen to surrender my judgment of them?
• In what ways could I see them as a blessing?

The transformational antidote to judgmental feelings is gratitude. William Arthur Ward offers this quote to us, “Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings.”
My prayer for all of us, through the holidays, is that in gratitude we remember what we are celebrating: gratitude for the unconditional love of our creator, redeemer, and sustainer, which we are called to mirror to others through grace and love. Let this be where the joy and peace of this season is truly found.-------
"When did I last speak to someone about my faith?" for Saturday, 26 November 2016
Matthew 28:19 Therefore, go and make people from all nations into talmidim, immersing them into the reality of the Father, the Son and the Ruach HaKodesh, 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember! I will be with you always, yes, even until the end of the age.”
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When John Wesley challenges us with the question, “When did I last speak to someone about my faith?” he is directly encouraging us to take up the challenge Jesus gave his disciples in Acts 1:8ff[Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Ruach HaKodesh comes upon you; you will be my witnesses both in Yerushalayim and in all Y’hudah and Shomron, indeed to the ends of the earth!”], to be his witnesses or storytellers. In Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:46-49, and John 20:21-22[Matthew 28:18 Yeshua came and talked with them. He said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore, go and make people from all nations into talmidim, immersing them into the reality of the Father, the Son and the Ruach HaKodesh, 20 and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you. And remember! I will be with you always, yes, even until the end of the age.”, Mark 16:5 Then he said to them, “As you go throughout the world, proclaim the Good News to all creation. 16 Whoever trusts and is immersed will be saved; whoever does not trust will be condemned., Luke 24:46 telling them, “Here is what it says: the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day; 47 and in his name repentance leading to forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed to people from all nations, starting with Yerushalayim. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 Now I am sending forth upon you what my Father promised, so stay here in the city until you have been equipped with power from above.”, and John 20:21 “Shalom aleikhem!” Yeshua repeated. “Just as the Father sent me, I myself am also sending you.” 22 Having said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Ruach HaKodesh!,], we also read that Jesus challenged his followers to continue the mission and message of God’s work. To respond faithfully to Wesley’s question is to live a life of going, obeying and listening to the Holy Spirit, realizing that each one of us is sent into the world to be the hands and feet of Jesus.
• When did you last speak to someone about your faith? Do you show your faith more
through your words or deeds? How can you balance both of those sides of the gospel
“coin” in your day-to-day life? Think through your story of personal transformation. How has your faith in God changed your life and made you a better person, who has a better effect on the lives of others? Spend some time writing your story down.
Prayer: God, you sent Jesus to show us the way. I pray that I would profess my trust in the saving grace of the gospel with courage and direction from the Holy Spirit, helping you draw my family and friends to your transforming love. Amen.
Family Activity: John Wesley’s rule stated, “Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.” As a family, talk about each of these phrases. What does the word “all” mean? Are there any exceptions? Compare Wesley’s rule to Jesus’ greatest commandments found in Matthew 22:37-40[Matthew 22:37 He told him, “‘You are to love Adonai your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.’[Matthew 22:37 Deuteronomy 6:5] 38 This is the greatest and most important mitzvah. 39 And a second is similar to it, ‘You are to love your neighbor as yourself.’[Matthew 22:39 Leviticus 19:18] 40 All of the Torah and the Prophets are dependent on these two mitzvot.”]. Identify ways your family can grow to follow Jesus’ and John Wesley’s rules more completely. Share and celebrate your stories at the dinner table or at bedtime. Pray and ask God to help you love others as God loves you.
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Insights from Dave Pullin

Dave Pullin serves as the Director of Technical Arts at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection. The Technical Arts ministry handles all audio/visual/technical support for the church including worship services and events.
I must admit, I struggle with this one. I don’t talk about my faith as much as I should. Sometimes when I do share my faith, I feel like I am either being overly-religious, which can come off as inauthentic, or I am trying to be too sensitive and end up watering down the very beliefs I hold dear, which is also inauthentic. And now that religion seems to be just as taboo a topic as politics, I struggle with knowing when and how to talk to others about my spirituality without making them (or me) feel awkwardly uncomfortable.
There have also been times in my life when someone else has tried to share their faith with me, but I immediately felt like I was a project and they were interested in me only as a transaction to complete or part of a quota to fill. Even though I appreciated their conviction and fervor, I felt like I didn’t really matter to them as a person, but only as a number, which seems counter to the message of Jesus. At least they were actually talking to people, which was more than I could say for myself. But as I look at how Jesus interacted with other people, he modeled intimate, personal connection. I can imagine that when he looked at someone, he truly saw who they were, what their struggles were, and cared about them on a personal level. I wonder if that example of sharing faith is what we should be modeling.
When I take time to think about the people who had the most significant impact on my faith, I notice that it was not the words they chose, how eloquently they explained the Problem of Sin or how well they understood the theological aspects of Substitutionary Atonement. Rather, what stood out was the amount of time they invested in getting to know me as a person. They built a relationship with me, and due to that relationship, I respected their opinions and their beliefs. When I struggled with a passage of Scripture, a biblical concept, or with a moral or ethical dilemma, it was usually their advice and guidance that I would seek.
It’s easy for me, as a staff member for the church, to hide behind the fact that my job is behind the scenes. I can rationalize that my role primarily helps support others in creating those relational touch points where spiritual growth can occur. And although there is truth in that, I cannot escape the fact that I am still called to be in relationship with, and to minister to, others. We all are. So when I think of Wesley’s question asking ‘When did I last speak to someone about my faith?,’ I feel convicted about getting outside of my small circle of friends. I feel called to be intentional about meeting new people; not as projects, but to make new friends, forge new relationships, and take a sincere interest in other people. That, to me, is the root of sharing the good news, not so much making certain I have an answer for every question or theological debate. I simply need to do a better job of creating moments of true connection, where authentic conversation can take place. When I am actually able to do that, then the deep conversations eventually come on their own, and they are truly amazing.-------
Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
• Marsha Monica and family on the death of her father Dale Dixon, 11/5
• John DeVera and family on the death of his mother Kitty Juanita DeVera, 11/3
•Deb Wertin and family on the death of her mother Donna Bracken, 11/3
•Ty Cowan and family on the death of his son Evan Cowan, 11/1
•Victoria Edmondson and family on the death of her ex-husband Mike Edmondson, 11/1
•Friends and family on the death of Lester “Les” Pebley, 10/31
• John Yost and family on the death of his sister Dorothy Plum, 10/31
• Megan O’Neill and family on the death of her grandfather Nelson Ball, 10/30
• Jane Berry and family on the death of her mother Shirley Conway, 10/30

•Randy Weast and family on the death of his father Max Snodgrass, 10/29
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