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6 As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing. 16 At my first defense no one came to my support, but all deserted me. May it not be counted against them! 17 But the Lord stood by me and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. So I was rescued from the lion's mouth. 18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and save me for his heavenly kingdom. To him be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (2 Timothy 4:6-8, 16-18 The Message Bible)
Happy Tuesday, Friend. I pray this second day of your work week is blessed and of a blessing to all.
A dear friend and colleague of mine retired from a significant time as the chaplain on death row in the prison system. His was the job of praying and accompanying death row inmates to their scheduled execution. He was there from the days of the electric chair until the lethal injection. My friend spoke little to nothing of those days, guarding the intimately privacy of one's last hours; a job most people might have turned down. In the same way, some years ago, my insurance agent had an older gentleman who did his lawn. We would always talk and I invited him to our church. He started to attend faithfully for about a month when I got word that he was in the hospital. I went to see him and he told me that the doctors did not give him long to live but he was alright because he had heard the gospel message through some of the sermons I shared. He said he felt peace and was happy to know he had a home waiting for him beyond this life. It was a touching moment. Today, we heard the words from the Apostle Paul as he unloads his heart to his spiritual son, Timothy.
There's no denial, no desperation, no panic. He's facing execution with the calm assurance of someone who's lived well and finished strong.
The phrase "my life an offering" captures how Paul views his impending martyrdom—not as tragedy but as worship, not as waste but as sacrifice that honors God. His death will be the final punctuation mark on a life poured out for the gospel. It's the last sentence in a story written well.
Most of us won't face martyrdom, but we all face the question: How will I finish? Will I coast to the end, fade into irrelevance, or cross the finish line with energy and purpose still intact? Paul shows us what it looks like to end well.
"This is the only race worth running. I've run hard right to the finish, believed all the way." Paul isn't bragging—he's testifying. He's not saying he was perfect but that he was faithful, not that he never fell but that he kept getting up and running.
Notice what Paul emphasizes: He fought the good fight (not every fight, just the ones worth fighting), finished the race (didn't quit halfway through), and kept the faith (maintained his grip on truth even when pressured to let go). This is what finishing strong looks like—staying engaged in what matters until the very end.
The contemporary Christian landscape is littered with people who started strong but didn't finish—leaders who fell morally, believers who drifted spiritually, workers who burned out emotionally. Paul reminds us that how you finish matters as much as how you start.
Paul looks forward to receiving "the crown of righteousness"—not because he earned it through perfect performance but because God rewards faithful endurance.
The phrase "everyone eager for his coming" describes people who live with heaven in view, who make decisions based on Christ's return, who invest in what lasts rather than what's temporary. Paul includes himself in this group—he's not claiming special status but inviting everyone into the same promise.
This isn't about being rewarded for being better than others. It's about God honoring those who honored Him, celebrating those who stayed faithful when it would have been easier to quit. God doesn't forget your labor of love, your persistent service, your quiet obedience that no one else noticed.
Paul reflects on how God has rescued him repeatedly throughout his ministry—from angry mobs, from shipwrecks, from assassination plots, from countless dangers.
But notice what Paul means by "rescue." He's not expecting God to keep him from execution—he's already said he's about to die. The rescue he's confident in is being brought "safely to his heavenly kingdom." Even death itself becomes part of God's rescue plan, not an interruption of it.
This reframes how we think about God's deliverance. Sometimes He rescues us from the lion's mouth. Sometimes He rescues us through the lion's mouth. But either way, we end up where He intends—safe in His presence, secure in His kingdom.
Paul's final words invite us to evaluate our own race. Are you still running or have you pulled off to the side? Are you fighting the good fights or wasting energy on battles that don't matter? Are you keeping the faith or letting it slip away in the face of cultural pressure?
Finishing well doesn't happen accidentally. It requires intentional endurance, persistent faithfulness, and the daily choice to keep believing and keep serving even when it's hard. It means surrounding yourself with people who will help you finish, not distract you from the race.
Most importantly, it means recognizing that when everyone else abandons you, the Master stands by you. His presence makes the difference between finishing strong and just finishing, between crossing the line with praise and limping across with regret.
PRAYER: Lord, help us run the race worth running with the same faithfulness Paul demonstrated, trusting that even when others abandon us You will stand by us, and that the crown You promise is worth every sacrifice we make along the way.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! OUR CALL TO ACTION: Honestly assess where you are in your race—are you running strong toward the finish or have you lost momentum?—and identify one specific area where you need to re-engage with the same faithfulness Paul modeled, trusting that God's presence is sufficient even when human support fails.
I love you and I thank God for you! You matter to me and you matter to God. Make life matter by how you live a positive witness of faith.
Pastor Eradio Valverde, Jr.
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