2 Timothy Chapter 4

6 For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time for my departure is near. 7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.  2 Timothy 4

As I sit to write this, the loss of my grandmother is very fresh. She was the first person in my family, who passed away in the faith. As I reflected on her life, Paul’s words, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith, apply to her life as well. After her passing, the family learned of the countless people of all ages my grandmother poured her life into. She opened her home to the homeless, started a garden ministry in an elementary school, was the head deaconess for many years, she helped addicts get into treatment, and there was much, much, more. 

My grandmother’s life is an inspiration to me, I also want to finish well and keep the faith. However, the true inspiration is a life transformed by Christ. My grandmother (like all of us) was a very flawed person. There were many struggles throughout the years, especially when it came to familial relationships. It was the Holy Spirit’s work within her that enabled all the good works and the mending of relations before her passing.

This verse is a reminder to me that by keeping the faith, God will continue to transform the very flawed person I am, to become more and more like Him, and finish the race well. In a paraphrase of Philippians 1:6, I can be confident that God will continue His good work in me until the day for my departure.

2 Timothy Chapter 3

It's not hard to read today's opening paragraphs and find strong correlations between Paul's assertions to Timothy about the end times within the culture in which we are now live.

2 People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, 4 treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God— 5 having a form of godliness but denying its power. 

What does the Holy Spirit bring to your mind with the statement above “having a form of godliness but denying its power”? Take a minute and ponder this.

Throughout my life I have been witness to many powerful moves of God and EVERY time, the result was worship and people surrendering their lives to Christ. Without fail, when God moves in power there is an undeniable presence of His holiness. 

My heart longs to see more of this in the body of Christ today. The world needs Christians to live in and be conduits of the power of God.

Spending time in the Holy Scriptures is one way we learn the truth and gather the wisdom to walk in Gods power. Paul gives a strong encouragement to Timothy (and us as believers) us to dive into it, memorize and learn its truth.

My prayer is that we would be a people who long to live life in the power of God. That we would see wondrous displays of His power through healing and miracles that all eyes and hearts would turn to Him. That we would be humble, always learning and able to understand the truth, because our love God is displayed through the way we live our lives.

Amen 

2 Timothy Chapter 2

I love the first part of this chapter.  As I sit here and read, I feel my heart rate increasing. I am pretty sure that it’s not due to my coffee but rather the text.  Paul is speaking my language.  It feels like a scene from a good action movie.  He talks about war and athletes, Triumph and failure.  

Even though this was not the circumstance, as I read I found myself imagining Paul pacing back and forth as his followers stood at attention thinking about the task ahead.  I imagined Paul raising his voice much like that of an army commander pumping up his troops as they prepare for battle. I pictured a scene from a move like Braveheart or Gladiator with Mel Gibson or Russel Crowe getting his men ready for battle. 

Paul in this chapter is pushing us.  He is pushing us to the end.  He encourages us to push through to completion.  In verse 11 to 13 he writes, “If we died with Him, we will also live with Him. If we endure, we will also reign with Him. If we disown Him, He will also disown us. If we are faithless, he remains faithful, for He cannot disown Himself.” We must live knowing that everything we have, everything we have accomplished is worthless unless it is found in Him.