Unashamed

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.

— 2 Timothy 1:7

While Timothy was not Paul’s biological child, the apostle’s affection for the young man was crystal clear in his letters—especially his second to Timothy. He thanked God for Timothy, praying for him “night and day” (v. 3). He longed to see him and recalled how sincere Timothy’s faith was, a faith learned from his mother Eunice and grandmother Lois. Paul encouraged him to “fan the flame” of this great gift and never be hesitant or ashamed of it. He did not want Timothy to act in fear of what might be ahead but to share the gift with the spirit of power and love given to all believers by God.

Timothy had seen this spirit of power modeled by Lois and Eunice. They taught him well.

This is a reminder for each of us to live with a spirit of power and love and self-control. We’re a model of what that means. Parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, friends. Children are looking up to us to see what choices we make. And they aren’t the only ones.

Timothy was a young man, but not a child, when he looked to his mother and Paul for guidance and wisdom. Those who are new in their walk with the Lord are looking to mature believers to be examples. They want to see what it means to live out the power and love that we’re promised.

This is a huge responsibility. We should never be ashamed of our faith. Instead we should model a life filled with love and power and self-control to those around us and pray that new believers will be spurred on to even greater faith when they see it.

Today’s One Thing

Share with a child in your life a time when God has blessed you.

Receive Devotionals like This in Your Email