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1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, for the sake of the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, 2 To Timothy, my beloved child: Grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I am grateful to God—whom I worship with a clear conscience, as my ancestors did—when I remember you constantly in my prayers night and day. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, a faith that lived first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and now, I am sure, lives in you. 6 For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; 7 for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline. 8 Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, 9 who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to his own purpose and grace. This grace was given to us in Christ Jesus before the ages began, 10 but it has now been revealed through the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel. 11 For this gospel I was appointed a herald and an apostle and a teacher, 12 and for this reason I suffer as I do. But I am not ashamed, for I know the one in whom I have put my trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard until that day what I have entrusted to him. 13 Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. 14 Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.(2 Timothy 1:1-14 NRSV)
May this find you enjoying a tremendous Tuesday, dear Friend! May you and yours be enjoying God's rich and wonderful blessings today is my prayer.
I love having fireplaces in the homes in which I live. We haven't had many but the ones which had them were special. We couldn't wait for the first cold spell to hit our area so that we could start a nice fire to keep us warm and entertained. There are many purposes to fire besides warmth and entertainment. And there are other uses of the word fire, one of which applies to the spiritual realm. The symbol of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost was the falling of flames upon all the disciples. We also say or hear, "he's on fire for the Lord!" And that is what Paul is referring to here. The letter is addressed to Timothy, whom Paul saw as his son in faith and ministry. Their friendship and love was genuine and Timothy cried at Paul's last departure from his visit. Timothy is the son and grandson of early Christian believers; and.a product of their faith. Paul gently and lovingly encourages him to "rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands." The question becomes how do we rekindle our faith or gift? It begins with our praying more, worshiping more, studying and reading the Bible more, interacting with Christian friends; asking God to fan the flames again in our spirits. Sunday, I had the privilege of preaching at First Presbyterian. I preached on last Monday's gospel text on the Rich Man and Lazarus, and I stressed the reality of the separation that occurs to those who die alienated from God. I offered Christ as the One who can save us and make us right with God. After the service, a gentleman with a walker, perhaps the oldest gentleman in worship, came twice to thank me, both time with tears in his eyes. I believe God allowed me to connect with him on a heart-to-heart level.
Paul stresses power in the seventh verse; "God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and love and of self-discipline." It may have been that Timmy reached a point of shyness or timidity, and was not doing as Paul and his mom and grandmother had taught him. Paul says to Timmy, and to us, "Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the gospel, relying on the power of God, who saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works but according to His own purposes and grace." And Paul then reminds Timmy of his own calling and work.
Paul was an awesome mentor in the faith. I have had some awesome mentors in the faith, and I thank God that I married one! This afternoon I was telling Nellie how I sometimes wake up with a song in my head and after devotional time I go and play it. She says, "I love it when God gives me a Bible verse when I wake up." Gulp. I thank the Lord, my wife is a saint and prays for me. I wanted to hear "Rag Doll," and Nellie wanted. a Bible verse for her morning blessing. That kind of conversation blesses me! What about you? Who are your mentors? How can they help you rekindle the flame of your life?
PRAYER: Heavenly Father, for the faith we have, we give You thanks. For the ones who have mentored us in faith we are also thankful. That is our prayer, Loving Father, bless us in ways that we can mentor others, and help us make time with our mentors to rekindle the flames. Make our faith stronger! In Christ Jesus we pray, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord! Be a mentor for someone today!
Blessings of love,
Pastor Eradio Valverde
