The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States "Bethlehem and David" for Tuesday, 29 November 2016

The Daily Guide. grow. pray. study. from The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kansas, United States "Bethlehem and David" for Tuesday, 29 November 2016

Ruth 1:1 Back in the days when the judges were judging, at a time when there was a famine in the land, a certain man from Beit-Lechem went to live in the territory of Mo’av — he, his wife and his two sons.
16 But Rut said,
“Don’t press me to leave you
and stop following you;
for wherever you go, I will go;
and wherever you stay, I will stay.
Your people will be my people
and your God will be my God.
17 Where you die, I will die;
and there I will be buried.
May Adonai bring terrible curses on me,
and worse ones as well,
if anything but death
separates you and me.”
18 When Na‘omi saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.
19 So the two of them went on until they came to Beit-Lechem. When they arrived in Beit-Lechem, the whole city was stirred with excitement over them. The women asked, “Can this be Na‘omi?”
22 This is how Na‘omi returned, with Rut the woman from Mo’av, her daughter-in-law, accompanying her from the plain of Mo’av. They arrived in Beit-Lechem at the beginning of the barley harvest.
4:11 All the people at the gate and the leaders said, “We are witnesses. May Adonai make the woman who has come into your house like Rachel and like Le’ah, who between them built up the house of Isra’el. Do worthy deeds in Efrat; become renowned in Beit-Lechem. 12 May your house, because of the seed Adonai will give you from this young woman, become like the house of Peretz, whom Tamar bore to Y’hudah.”
13 So Bo‘az took Rut, and she became his wife. He had sexual relations with her, Adonai enabled her to conceive, and she gave birth to a son. 14 Then the women said to Na‘omi, “Blessed be Adonai, who today has provided you a redeemer! May his name be renowned in Isra’el. 15 May he restore your life and provide for your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you and is better to you than seven sons, has given birth to him.” 16 Na‘omi took the child, laid it on her breast and became its nurse. 17 The women who were her neighbors gave it a name; they said, “A son has been born to Na‘omi,” and called it ‘Oved. He was the father of Yishai the father of David.
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The story of Naomi and her daughter-in-law Ruth centered in Bethlehem. (Today’s reading just samples it. It is only four chapters long—if you’ve never read it, try to find the time to do so.) It was a story of loyalty, devotion and commitment, with far-reaching effects. Ruth became the great-grandmother of the great King David. (You can read about the prophet Samuel going to Bethlehem to anoint the boy David as future king in 1 Samuel 16:1-13.)
• The story of Ruth told how God used Boaz, a prosperous farmer, to help Ruth, a Moabite
immigrant, and her mother-in-law Naomi, by letting her glean in his fields (cf. Leviticus 19:9-10, 23:22). From his generosity came their marriage. From that came a line that led to King David, and, centuries later, to Jesus. When have you seen an outwardly small act of sharing (in
resources, time, or talent) launch positive results that went far beyond what the giver might have expected?
• Pastor David Jackman wrote that what Boaz did was “a reflection of the covenant-love
(hesed) of Yahweh for His people, and at the same time a very practical illustration of how the quality could be worked out in interpersonal human relationships.”1 In what ways have you learned to appreciate God’s steadfast love for you? How has God’s love shaped the ways you act towards other people?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, son of David, thank you for men like Boaz and women like Ruth who, right in long-ago Bethlehem, let their generosity and love set events in motion that led to your birth as my Savior in that same town. Amen.
1 David Jackman, The Preacher’s Commentary series, Volume 7: Judges, Ruth. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, p. 345.
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Insights from Courtney Felzke

Courtney Felzke is Chaplain of Silver Link, providing Pastoral Care to many within the Silver Link Ministry as well as doing work behind the scenes in the ministry, including: coordinating care for those served by the ministry and recruiting and training new volunteers.
In his sermon this weekend, Pastor Adam challenged us this week to be thinking about the effect we will have on others. Today’s scripture reading helps us see the impact Boaz had on Ruth and Naomi, and then the influence/impact Ruth had on many generations to come.
After listening to Adam’s sermon, and reading todays GPS, I thought of the impact my dad had on my life. When I was a sophomore in college, I remember going through a particularly difficult semester. I called and talked with my dad often during that semester. While he always had good insight and kind words to share with me, what was most impactful was the book he gave me during that trial in my life. Dad gave me Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking. He shared with me how helpful this book was to him when he was lacking confidence and going through his own trials in life. I remember the book and dad’s insights helping me through that semester of college. But this book was most helpful after my dad passed away, and I found myself struggling deeply with anxiety. It was a time when over and over again I heard words running through my head telling me that I wasn’t good enough and would never make it in the career I was seeking. I struggled greatly with confidence in my God given abilities due to these ruminating thoughts and anxiety. It was at this time that I remembered the book my dad had given me for such times as this. One of Peale’s thoughts that I found most helpful during that time was, “One of the most powerful concepts, one which is a sure cure for lack of confidence, is the thought that God is actually with you and helping you. This is one of the simplest teachings in religion, namely, that Almighty God will be your companion, will stand by you, help you, and see you through. No other idea is so powerful in developing self-confidence as this simple belief when practiced. To practice it simply affirm ‘God is with me; God is helping me; God is guiding me.’” (pg 33 of Norman Vincent Peale’s The Power of Positive Thinking, Fireside publishing, 2003.)
My dad, although he had passed, had so impacted my life that when things got extremely tough, I could still use the resources and skills he taught me to navigate my way through any trial. Now I’m challenged to share this book and dad’s positive thoughts with you. As we quickly approach 2017, I plan to make this a goal for the New Year: sharing the importance of positive self-talk with others. I encourage each of you to think about the legacy others have left for you. Then think about what legacy you want to leave. How can you impact the lives of others for good?-------
"God’s choosing of ordinary working men" for Wednesday, 30 November 2016
Judges 6:11 Then the angel of Adonai came and sat under the pistachio tree in ‘Ofrah that belonged to Yo’ash the Avi‘ezri. His son Gid‘on was threshing wheat in the winepress, in order to hide it from Midyan. 12 The angel of Adonai appeared to him and said to him: “You valiant hero! Adonai is with you!” 13 “Excuse me, sir,” answered Gid‘on, “but if Adonai is with us, then why is all this happening to us? And where are all his miracles our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Didn’t Adonai bring us up from Egypt?’ For now Adonai has abandoned us and handed us over to Midyan.” 14 Adonai turned to him and said, “Go in this strength of yours and save Isra’el from the hands of Midyan. Haven’t I sent you?” 15 But Gid‘on answered him, “Forgive me, my Lord, but with what am I to save Isra’el? Why, my family is the poorest in M’nasheh, and I’m the youngest person in my father’s house!” 16 Adonai said to him, “Because I will be with you, you will strike down Midyan as easily as if they were just one man.”
Amos 1:1 The words of ‘Amos, one of the sheep owners in T’koa, which he saw concerning Isra’el in the days of ‘Uziyah king of Y’hudah and Yarov‘am the son of Yo’ash, king of Isra’el, two years before the earthquake; 2 he said:
Adonai is roaring from Tziyon
thundering from Yerushalayim;
the shepherds’ pastures will mourn,
and Mount Karmel’s summit will wither.
7:14 ‘Amos gave this answer to Amatzyah: “I am not trained as a prophet, and I’m not one of the guild prophets — I own sheep and grow figs. 15 But Adonai took me away from following the flock, and Adonai said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Isra’el.’
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Gideon the farmer or the shepherd Amos are only two examples of many we find in Scripture showing that, long before Jesus’ earthly father Joseph, God often called hard, conscientious but ordinary workers. (Of course, God also called people like Moses, raised in Pharaoh’s palace, or the apostle Paul, trained in the finest rabbinical school in Jerusalem.) The point is that God seeks people with receptive hearts, whatever their earthly status.
• Gideon’s story was striking. God’s messenger greeted him as “mighty warrior.” Gideon, not feeling like a mighty warrior, asked, “How can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I’m the youngest in my household.” And “The LORD replied, “Because I’m with you, you’ll defeat the Midianites.” When have you seen God’s power accomplish something through you or someone you know that you couldn’t have done on your own?
• Like many prophets, Amos attracted some serious opposition. But he saw his message
not as a cause he had invented, but as a deadly serious God-given commission, whatever
the cost. So he kept preaching, even when those in authority ordered him not to. When
have you had to stick with a purpose you believed was right, even if you faced opposition or ridicule?
Prayer: Lord God, you achieve most of your work through people willing to put themselves in the service of your kingdom. Make me, like Gideon, Amos or Joseph, one of those people. Amen.
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Insights from Steven Blair

Rev. Steven Blair is the Congregational Care Pastor of Live Forward and Live Well Emotional Wellness Ministry. www.cor.org/liveforward
We have our excuses and reservations. We look at the weak parts of our character, the imperfections of our relationships, or a perceived lack of skill as reasons why we aren’t useful to God. We emphasize our strengths and minimize our weaknesses.
But let’s look at Amos. Amos is not a professional prophet who is used to doing tough things for God. Yet, rather than allowing that to hold him back he used it as part of his credibility. Here are his words to the priest in the north, Amaziah, who did not like Amos’ message.
Amos answered Amaziah, “I am not a prophet, nor am I a prophet’s son; but I am a shepherd, and a trimmer of sycamore trees.” – Amos 7:14
Being a shepherd and a trimmer of trees could have been seen as a negative but Amos flipped the perception. It was because he wasn’t a professional prophet that his words had so much power. He was relatable and real. His negative became a positive.
Think of your negatives. Write them down. Then fill out the following statement like Amos:
I am not (perfect, in ideal relationships, a Bible expert, head of my company, envied by my neighbors) but I am ____________.
Whatever you write in that blank is what makes you real. It is the very reason why God wants to use you today like God used Amos.
With God, your negatives are your positives. Let God do something big today through you, because you are you.
Grace and Peace,
Steven Blair
Imperfect Dad, Husband, Son, Pastor….Used by God-------
"Joseph of Bethlehem" for Thursday, 1 December 2016
Matthew 1:16 Ya‘akov was the father of Yosef the husband of Miryam,
    from whom was born the Yeshua who was called the Messiah.
18 Here is how the birth of Yeshua the Messiah took place. When his mother Miryam was engaged to Yosef, before they were married, she was found to be pregnant from the Ruach HaKodesh. 19 Her husband-to-be, Yosef, was a man who did what was right; so he made plans to break the engagement quietly, rather than put her to public shame.
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The gospel of Matthew did not duplicate the gospel of Luke, but rather complemented it. While Luke told the story of Jesus’ birth through the eyes of Mary, Matthew told the story from the standpoint of Joseph, who was engaged to Mary when the story began. Although Mary lived in the tiny village of Nazareth, it seems from the slender evidence the gospels give us that Bethlehem was Joseph’s home town (cf. Luke 2:1-4). If so, that suggests that their families arranged the marriage, as was common in their time and place.
• It would be nice if the GPS could have you read an eloquent speech Joseph made about
being Jesus’ earthly father. But, as Pastor Hamilton wrote, “Unlike Mary, Joseph has no
‘lines’—we don’t read a single word he speaks in the Gospels…. He is the patron saint of
those who serve and do the right thing without seeking any credit.”1 How easy or hard do you find it to be content when the spotlight falls on someone else more than on you?
• Pastor Hamilton also wrote, “Jesus likely learned from Joseph something he taught his
disciples. ‘Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness to be seen by others,’ he said, ‘so that you get credit in their eyes…. Instead, do your acts of righteousness in secret—your Father will see and will reward you.’”2 Try this spiritual exercise: do something good, in a way that no other human being will know about. Give yourself a chance to serve without any hope of recognition—except from God.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, continue to teach me the lessons you learned from Joseph. Help me to
value opportunities to bless and serve others more than I value applause from others. Amen.
1 Adam Hamilton, The Journey: A Season of Reflections. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2011, p. 45.
2 Adam Hamilton, The Journey: Walking the Road to Bethlehem. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2011, p. 55.
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"Joseph the carpenter" for Friday. 2 December 2016 
Matthew 13:53 When Yeshua had finished these parables, he left 54 and went to his home town. There he taught them in their synagogue in a way that astounded them, so that they asked, “Where do this man’s wisdom and miracles come from? 55 Isn’t he the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother called Miryam? and his brothers Ya‘akov, Yosef, Shim‘on and Y’hudah? 56 And his sisters, aren’t they all with us? So where does he get all this?” 57 And they took offense at him. But Yeshua said to them, “The only place people don’t respect a prophet is in his home town and in his own house.”
Mark 6:1 Then Yeshua left and went to his home town, and his talmidim followed him. 2 On Shabbat he started to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard him were astounded. They asked, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom he has been given? What are these miracles worked through him? 3 Isn’t he just the carpenter? the son of Miryam? the brother of Ya‘akov and Yosi and Y’hudah and Shim‘on? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. 4 But Yeshua said to them. “The only place people don’t respect a prophet is in his home town, among his own relatives, and in his own house.” 5 So he could do no miracles there, other than lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 He was amazed at their lack of trust.
Then he went through the surrounding towns and villages, teaching.
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In keeping with Joseph’s relative obscurity, the gospel writers never specifically said what he did for a living. They never directly called him a carpenter. However, both Matthew and Mark recorded that when Jesus went to Nazareth, many of the people rejected him. In Matthew’s version, they called him “the carpenter’s son.” According to Mark, they identified Jesus himself as a carpenter—it seems logical that he would have learned his father’s trade.
• A United Bible Societies handbook for Bible translators noted, “The noun ‘carpenter’ may
refer to one who builds with wood or stone. Wood is somewhat rare in Palestine, and
houses are most frequently constructed with stone.”1 Joseph and Jesus may have been
stone masons, or may have been “subcontractors,” making wood items like doors for stone houses. People’s response suggests they did not see such workers as wise or impressive. Are you open to learning from anyone who has valuable insight to offer, or do you discount those who don’t have the “right” outward credentials?
• The texts mention Jesus’ mother and siblings, but not his father. Most scholars believe Joseph died sometime before Jesus’ public ministry began. (Again, the gospels simply do not mention that.) Joseph apparently had a 12 to 30-year window to help protect and shape Jesus growth. What opportunities do you have to serve, bless or shape people and events? Are you ever tempted to think those opportunities will last forever?
Prayer: Lord, the gospels suggest that you and your earthly father were carpenters. Sadly, many people in your day added the word “just” before carpenter. Help me to value all people, not only the ones who are like me or impress me. Amen.
1 Barclay M. Newman and Phillip C. Stine, A Handbook on the Gospel of Matthew in the UBS Handbook Series. New York: United Bible Societies, 1988, p. 444
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"Bethlehem and Jesus" for Saturday, 3 December 2016
Micah 5:1 (2) But you, Beit-Lechem near Efrat,
so small among the clans of Y’hudah,
out of you will come forth to me
the future ruler of Isra’el,
whose origins are far in the past,
back in ancient times.
2 (3) Therefore he will give up [Isra’el]
only until she who is in labor gives birth.
Then the rest of his kinsmen
will return to the people of Isra’el.
3 (4) He will stand and feed his flock
in the strength of Adonai,
in the majesty of the name
of Adonai his God;
and they will stay put, as he grows great
to the very ends of the earth;
4 (5) and this will be peace.
If Ashur invades our land,
if he overruns our fortresses,
we will raise seven shepherds against him,
eight leaders of men.
5 (6) They will shepherd the land of Ashur with the sword,
the land of Nimrod at its gates;
and he will rescue us from Ashur
when he invades our land,
when he overruns our borders.
John 7:40 On hearing his words, some people in the crowd said, “Surely this man is ‘the prophet’”; 41 others said, “This is the Messiah.” But others said, “How can the Messiah come from the Galil? 42 Doesn’t the Tanakh say that the Messiah is from the seed of David[John 7:42 2 Samuel 7:12] and comes from Beit-Lechem,[John 7:42 Micah 5:1(2)] the village where David lived?” 43 So the people were divided because of him.
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Bethlehem we know, but what’s this “Ephrathah”? It meant “fruitful,” and was the name of the district around Bethlehem. The prophet Micah preached in Jerusalem about 700 years before Christ. (Jeremiah 26:17-19 mentioned him.) As the armies of the mighty Assyrian Empire threatened Jerusalem, Micah promised that God would send a deliverer, born in Bethlehem. Hebrew scribes quoted Micah 5:2 to tell King Herod the Messiah’s birthplace (Matthew 2:6). John recorded Jesus’ enemies arguing that he couldn’t possibly be God’s Messiah. They used his growing up in Galilee as proof: “Didn’t the scripture say that the Christ comes from David’s family and from Bethlehem, David’s village?” Of course, he did—if they had only paid attention to a small detail like his father’s home town.
• Micah stressed God’s ability to do big things in people and settings that seemed minor. The divine ruler born in little Bethlehem, he said, would “surely become great throughout the earth.” When have you seen God do something big through something “little”? John’s symbolism underlined that Jesus, born in Bethlehem (which meant “house of bread”) was the bread of life, the source of living water. How will you allow him to nourish your soul this Christmas season?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, I don’t live anywhere near Bethlehem, but your love and grace have
touched and changed my life. Thank you for being a God who does big things even through
the small things of earth. Amen.
Family Activity: 
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Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
• Jim Purcell and family on the death of his wife Christy Purcell, 11/20
•Friends and family of Ida Yuille on her death, 11/17
•Gisele Shore and family on the death of her sister Tina Wilson, 11/15
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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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