Recently, I had one of those spiritual Aha! moments . . . I was the guest preacher at a Christian community on Lake Michigan where my family owns a cottage. My grandparents were strong Christians who began going there in 1938. It is a place where my mom’s faith was formed and shaped by my grandmother’s, who eventually passed it on to me.
Read More héritage, legacy, faithShame can silence us. This might happen when we see a homeless person on the street or a refugee child with no shoes or a widow who needs a helping hand. In our shame and their humiliation, we may be tempted to turn away from them. But as followers of Jesus, as men and women filled and empowered by the Holy Spirit …
Read More sharing the good news, shame, gospelHow do we persist in telling others about Jesus despite the difficulties we face in ministry? This is an uncomfortable question in our culture which does all it can to deny pain and find happiness in everything. To some, experiencing difficulty can appear feeble or pathetic.
Read More perseverance, discipline, difficulties, enduranceHow do we join God in restoring people from the lives they are trapped in? Do our words matter? How about our actions? According to Paul, yes and yes!
I’ve been reflecting lately on the importance of those who have helped restore me from the damage my choices sometimes produce.
Read More helping people, freedom, gentleness, being trappedSurely there is wisdom in looking at the bright side of things, of accentuating the positive in our lives and speaking well of the situations in which we find ourselves. The apostle Paul suggests this in various ones of his letters and even in the earlier parts of this second letter to Timothy. (See 2:1-2)
Read More good, light, love, gospel, darkness, courage, evilHaving looked squarely at the characteristics of those who are opposed to the gospel and to everything that is good, Paul now urges Timothy to consider three important truths. All of these come out of Timothy’s past experience and push him to re-examine both the reason and the purpose of his present ministry.
Read More truths, faith, encouragement, God’s Word, ConvictionHaving been a minister myself I recognize how easily discouragement can set in. Who do you talk to about your spiritual walk when people look to you as the one who provides spiritual encouragement to others? Who is there to lift you up?
Read More discouragement, God’s perspective, work, focus, Jesus as judge, personal convictionIt is easy to fall into the trap of seeing the ordinary activities of life as somehow less “spiritual” and thus less important than those activities where we worship God, pray and study our Bibles. There is no hint of that in these verses from Paul’s letter to Timothy.
Read More ordinary people, ordinary issues, personal needs