Speak Up For Right Living Using The language Of Love

Titus 2:1-2 - But as for you, speak up for the right living that goes along with true Christianity.  Teach the older men to be serious and unruffled; they must be sensible, knowing and believing the truth and doing everything with love and patience.

Paul knew that Titus would face many situations where choices for anything but what God taught in the scriptures would dilute…and eventually destroy the faith that he had come to know in God.  Paul wanted him to feel the importance of having the respect of the older men…so that teaching the younger ones would be natural result of watching the elders of the church do what was right in the sight of God.

His advice to Titus is even more important now.  Those of us that are older must speak up for right living…retaining a serious tone that shows the younger ones the urgency of trusting God’s way to be the best way to live ….every day. Our stance has to be delivered in love and we must have patience with them as they learn.

I needed the reminder this morning to take the strongest stance for God that I can each day.  It is much easier to let the opportunity to speak out go by … taking no stand at all.  But remember that the choice to remain silent is a choice for the other side. AND…that choice to keep silent is being watched by all those that know we have professed to be a follower of God.

On the other hand ...the choice to take a stand with harsh and judgmental tones is just as bad. Paul says to temper all that we do and say with love. We might let everyone know that we don’t accept the murder of abortion…or the same in same sex marriages….but we will lose the chance to lead them to God’s love if our stance is taken without love and patience.

Father...thank you for the reminder that I need to take a stand against the things that I know are contrary to your word. Forgive me for the times that I have stayed silent…or been too harsh in stating my stance.  Help me to use love and patience to not just say what I believe…but use that love to help others believe as well.  Amen.

See the Good...In Every Situation

Titus 1- 15-16 -   A person who is pure of heart sees goodness and purity in everything; but a person whose own heart is evil and untrusting finds evil in everything, for his dirty mind and rebellious heart color all he sees and hears.  Such persons claim they know God, but from seeing the way they act, one knows they don’t. They are rotten and disobedient, worthless so far as doing anything good is concerned.

Paul writes to his dear friend and helper Titus. He had left him to lead the churches on the reek island of Crete.  He gave him similar advice to Timothy…including a warning of the many false teachers that would try to dilute the truth of God’s gospel. Then he gives him one new way to measure the validity of a person’s claim to Christianity…their ability to see good in every situation.

I admit that is very hard to see good in some of the atrocities I see in the news. But let me stretch your thinking just a bit. The young girl who was shot by a young neighbor boy has rallied the community to pray and search for answers to why guns are so easily obtained by young adults these days. The deaths of those students in Oregon serve as a costly wake up call to those of us that think America is immune to persecution.

The Bible clearly states in Romans 8:28 that God can and will use all things for our good. We can’t let evil get the upper hand on our mind by letting it see only the bad. If we dwell on the bad…then our minds will begin to let go of the power God has to bring good out of the things we see as bad on the world. Job did not give up…his friends tried their best to get him to concede his sin…but Job held tight to his faith and in the end God brought good out of all that he had allowed satan to take from Job.

I needed the reminder that other people watch my response to the evil things that happen daily in our world.  God calls us all to use the pure heart he installed in us to see the bigger picture…  the good he intends to bring out of the evil he allows to reign for a short time. If I let the evil be in control for even one second…it might take root in my soul and begin to color all my thoughts in a negative way.

Father….thank you for the reminder that I need to always concentrate on the good that you plan to bring out of all bad situations.  Forgive me for the times that I have allowed the bad to control my thoughts and stopped looking for the possible good you intended to bring about.  Help me to concentrate on the good you plan to bring about from every bad and negative thing satan tries to accomplish. Amen.

His Ideas...Not Ours

2 Timothy 4:3-4 -   For there is going to come a time when people won’t listen to the truth but will go around looking for teachers who will tell them just what they want to hear.  They won’t listen to what the Bible says but will blithely follow their own misguided ideas.

These words of caution were included in Paul’s last letter to Timothy. His urgency ….his solemn tone… his plea of persistence in all situations….give this warning credibility. Timothy was fixing to take over the core of Paul’s ministry…he needed to understand just what he would be up against.

Perhaps the world has always had people like this…hedonistic …self-gratifiers that make up rules as they need them to fit their beliefs. But it seems as though we have reached these days…more and more people adopting a new ‘religion’ that fits the way they want to live … or rejecting all forms of higher powers completely.

Elijah proved to me that God was in charge of the world when he called down fire to consume a sacrifice after the priests of Baal had tried all day. Read 1 Kings 18 if you haven’t heard this story. Perhaps we need to have another contest of fire to show the world just who is in charge… but I choose to let the stories of miracles people tell me confirm my belief.

Contest….miracles…or lack of these things we are still to follow God in complete faith.  In Paul’s words from verse 2….  ^“to preach the Word of God urgently at all times, whenever you get the chance, in season and out, when it is convenient and when it is not. Correct and rebuke your people when they need it, encourage them to do right, and all the time be feeding them patiently with God’s Word.”  Those underlined parts are to remind me of the core of Paul’s advice.

We have no excuses…Paul tells us all throughout his writings that God will give us all that we need to complete this task. Philippians 4:19 says…. “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Christ Jesus.” Jesus himself charged us in Matthew 28….and gave us all authority to do His work while He was absent from this earth.

I will be the first to admit that I don’t do near enough to change the minds of those that have chosen to follow their own ideas. I was even caught up for some time in my own selfish …hypocritical version of Christianity. I have miles to go before I will feel as confident as Elijah…or Paul….but I have this one thing in my corner.  God loves me and will stick with me till I get there…training me the whole time.

Father…thank you for the reminder that I have everything I need in you….and you alone are the answer to everything I will encounter. Forgive me for the times that I have let my own ideas take over my thinking….and trick me into thinking that my own ideas are the same as yours.  Help me to always think like Paul…and Moses…and Elijah …. and Jesus…who knew the power to do anything lay with their faith in you. Amen.

Know The Bible...Study It For Yourself

2 Timothy 3:6-8 -   They are the kind who craftily sneak into other people’s homes and make friendships with silly, sin-burdened women and teach them their new doctrines. Women of that kind are forever following new teachers, but they never understand the truth.

Paul knew that one of the worst threats to the gospel was false teachers.  They preyed on the weakest of Christians…new converts…those that had no background in the scriptures….especially women. The culture of that day withheld education from them…so when someone offered knowledge…they soaked it up like a sponge….not knowing if it were true or not.

This concept still threatens the truth of the gospel message…even in a world where most are given the gift of education.  Even in America…where education is free to all…new doctrines pop up all the time…some very well thought out and logical. The only defense we have is to check its teachings against the Bible.

Paul’s comment here highlights one of the reasons we need to study the Bible for ourselves. If we don’t…we run the risk of believing anything a well-spoken leader says. We don’t need to believe everything a speaker says…just because he says it is supported by the Bible. We need to know if they are telling us the truth or not.  We need to know what we believe and where God said it is the truth in the Bible.

I will testify that before I began to study the Bible for myself….I was just as vulnerable as these women. If the words came from someone I respected…I believed what they said. Now…I believe or reject because I read it for myself….checking the things I haven’t heard before by the references they give…or using commentaries to research for myself. In a world where God gave us internet and more inspirational books than ever…we really have no excuse.

Father…thank you for the Bible.  Thank you for the ability to read and study its words and understand what it says.  Forgive me for the times that I have let false concepts take root in my mind and heart because I forgot how important it is to know your word for myself. Help me to find all the time I need to study and let its words soak into my heart and mind…so I will recognize and be able to quote where you wrote it down for me. Amen.

Will God say.... "Well Done?"

2 Timothy 2:15 -   Work hard so God can say to you, “Well done.” Be a good workman, one who does not need to be ashamed when God examines your work. Know what his Word says and means. 

Paul pours every bit of love he can into this letter to his good friend Timothy. He sits in prison…but the love he has for God is being transferred onto pieces of paper for his friend to be strengthened. Paul probable never imagined the number of believers that would also gain strength and wisdom from the words he placed in this letter to Timothy.

This charge to Timothy has long been one of my favorites. I ignored it for long years…letting the world do exactly what Paul warned Timothy against.  Life distracted me from learning the Bible God left us.  I read it in church….occasionally picking it up in hard times….but for the most part the Bible was an important book that I let others interpret for me.

It took the abandonment of divorce…and the pain of loss to bring me to my senses. God probably was steering me towards this epiphany years before with less pain and struggle…but something about being broken helps you realize that God is the only thing that can give you real answers…and all those answers are embedded in His word.

I try not to beat myself up anymore for wasting so much time….but thank God for the last 5 years of growth He has given me as I have begun to really read and try to understand all that He let others write down for us to follow. I have much still to learn…each verse unlocking new truth and understanding… even if I have read it 10 times before.

I will testify that nothing has helped me grow more in Christ that the time of study…and the writing of this blog each day. I cannot imagine going to sleep or waking any other way than to turn my thoughts to Him in reading one more chapter of His Bible….or waking to process just how it can help me move even closer to that goal that Paul talks about.

Father…thank you for the gift of your Bible and the strength and wisdom you embedded in each page of words.  Forgive me for the time that I wasted …letting others tell me about the Bible…but not opening and letting you guide me through it by myself. Help me to never let go of the precious time you have helped me to see as life altering. Draw me even closer to you by showing me even more time that I can spend in study and reflection in your great word. Amen.

Who Is Your example Of How To Stir Up The Power God Placed Inside Us?

2 Timothy 1:7-8 -   For the Holy Spirit, God’s gift, does not want you to be afraid of people, but to be wise and strong, and to love them and enjoy being with them. If you will stir up this inner power, you will never be afraid to tell others about our Lord or to let them know that I am your friend even though I am here in jail for Christ’s sake. You will be ready to suffer with me for the Lord, for he will give you strength in suffering.

Paul knew in his spirit that he might not see his dear friend Timothy again….so he poured into this letter the love and encouragement he thought the young preacher might need. Timothy was facing much persecution…and Paul knew the toll that such constant suffering could take on the soul. He wrote one of my favorite verses….don’t be timid…stir up the inner power that God gave you to be strong in the face of adversity.

The Oregon shooting is fresh on my mind…many lost their life because they heeded the words of this verse.  I think the only way they were able to call out that they indeed were Christians…is that they stirred up the inner power that Paul was talking about here.  Even with the fear of death…they boldly proclaimed who they belonged too.

I know of a lady who is fighting cancer. She had beat it before…and now it is back 7 times worse.  She isn’t cowering in defeat ….she is praying for healing…as well as using her time to speak out for Christ. She wants to be used to make sure all the doctors and nurses she meets have met God.  She has embraced Paul’s words as well.

I bet we could all tell the story of others who are present day examples of Paul’s great advice to Timothy. What great reminders these bold servants of Christ are to a world that is facing more persecution than ever. It gives me even more resolve to pray for my own boldness and courage if God allows me to be in a situation that may lead to such hard decisions. 

We are all afraid of being a Peter when it comes to such times…but we all hold the inner power inside us to be just as strong as Paul….Timothy…. Daniel in that lion’s den….his three friends in the fiery furnace…the Oregon students…and my sister’s friend Meagan with cancer. Perhaps by sharing the powerful stories of others who have faced severe persecution and followed Paul’s advice here…we can all find the courage to stand strong in our faith…and trust God no matter what.

Father…thank you for the reminder that no one dies in your care that is not rewarded in the nest season of life with you. Forgive me for the times that I let my fears keep me from being as bold and courageous as I need to be. Thank you for models like Megan and the students in Oregon who show me how to stir up the power you have placed inside me to be strong and courageous.  Amen.

The Most Important Thing

1 Timothy 6:20-21 -   Oh, Timothy, don’t fail to do these things that God entrusted to you. Keep out of foolish arguments with those who boast of their “knowledge” and thus prove their lack of it.  Some of these people have missed the most important thing in life—they don’t know God. May God’s mercy be upon you.  Sincerely, Paul

Paul closed his first letter to Timothy with a strong urging to use all that God had entrusted to him.  He cautioned him against arguing and debating theological points with others that would not relent their positions on things that the Bible clearly spoke the truth.  Paul wanted Timothy to concentrate on the most important thing….sharing the gospel truth with all that he could……so more people could come to know God.

Debating details of time and law do not unify the church and concentrate on the most important part of the gospel. We should concentrate our time and effort in helping people understand the mission of Jesus…His perfect life….the sacrifice He made in giving His life…and the defeat of death in His resurrection.  Once they have accepted this truth…and believe in Jesus…they can begin to sort out the other details as God reveals them through study and prayer. 

Let me use a phrase from Max Lucado’s book….You’ll Get Through This. He says to concentrate on doing the next thing that is right. Paul says the way to do that is to trust God…hold tight to His hand through study and prayer…remember that money and time on the earth are not permanent…love people more than money…love God’s work more than money and things….and share what we have been given with others.

I needed the reminder not to get caught up in useless debates or things that take my focus off of God. For me…that means making sure I use this wonderful time of retirement to do things that promote Christ. It is a time of confirmation that I am using my time these days to do what I will call….‘God Things.’ Subbing isn’t the highest paying job to supplement one’s income…but it serves teachers and students with the needed comfort of knowing they can be out when they need to be. Sewing quilts and working with other ministries in the church doesn’t pay me a penny…in fact...I spend more of my income to buy material to help keep the ministry going. The payback is the joy I feel when I finish a job…or turn in one more finished quilt. I just can’t stop smiling these days…even after a full day of work at school…or on a new quilt.

Father…thank you for the reminder that I need to use what you have given me in this season of life to do good things for you.  Forgive me for the times that I have let the fast pace of life and the loneliness of the moment distract me from what is most important.  Help me to use all that you have given me and thank you more often for the precious gift you gave me in salvation.  Amen.