From Whence We are Drawn

Thursday, March 5, 2020

I thank God, whom I serve with a pure conscience, as my forefathers did, as without ceasing I remember you in my prayers night and day, greatly desiring to see you, being mindful of your tears, that I may be filled with joy, when I call to remembrance the genuine faith that is in you, which dwelt first in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am persuaded is in you also. Therefore I remind you to stir up the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands.  For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.  2 Timothy 1:3-7

When you look at some family photos (in this case spanning nearly 100 years), it’s hard to ignore similarities.  My dad’s childhood pictures and those of his great-grandchildren, make family resemblance, the well from which we are drawn, an unmistakable connection.  

In this particular family album, the little guy born in 1918 and the little guy born in 2008 not only look alike, both were born baseball players, and both were frequently found behind a catcher’s mask.  

The link in between 1918 and 2008 (born in 1947) preferred third base but was known to catch a few games in high school.  Some links in the chain are undeniable.There is another set of links in that which is passed along; in Timothy’s case it was the faith, a strong sense of commitment to God’s promises, passed along from Lois to Eunice, and now found blossoming in Timothy; grandmother, to mother, to son.  Paul called it a gift that was placed in him by his upbringing, and an active calling which, by the laying on of hands God had bestowed on the young man to be a pastor.  Now Paul was urging his young protégé to stir-up that gift, to fan the embers into a useful fire.

For some of us it only takes a little reminder, a nudge in the right direction to get us started in the holy work of building God’s kingdom.  For others, including yours truly, the 1947 vintage, it takes a two-by-four applied to the noggin; some of us are slow learners.

For You Today

I see two lessons for us:

1.     Being Timothy, we need to review from whence we came, and how that faith was entrusted to us.  We need to respond to God’s calling without fear or selfishness.

2.     Being Paul, some of us need to grow beyond just thinking about our own work in the ministry and become an encouraging force to help draw others into their calling.

Both lessons require faith, commitment, and surrender to the will of God.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road; have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO

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[1] For more posts on 2 Timothy 1:3-7 see Facing Your Fear and a
       4-Part series on The Fear Factor:  Part 1  Part 2  Part 3  Part 4

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Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©