At that moment I had no idea I was looking at God's personal messenger to me.
The topic of the New Testament survey class was 2 Timothy. Joe began with comments about authorship and dating. It was when he was going through a brief outline of Paul's encouragement to Timothy that I got the nod.
When Joe read the 15th verse of chapter 2 it seemed God was speaking directly to me. I sensed I was receiving a short-list of instructions for my week and the prompting to share them.
I don't know about you, but my weeks seem to fill themselves with activity. I do my best to spread out my tasks and I think I do a good job of prioritizing them. Yet time after time I sense that my deep desire to please God somehow gets sidetracked by busy-ness. That's why when I realized Paul was writing about being approved by God I sat up and took notice.
"Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." 2 Timothy 2:15
The first word that caught my eye was "workman". Well actually it was the first syllable "work". I'm really thankful that Paul understands that pleasing God is not something that just happens. It takes effort and energy and time and focus and commitment and . . .
The next word that pops out is "ashamed". I for sure want to avoid guilt and embarrassment as I make my way through my days - most especially in my relationship with my heavenly Father but also in my relationships with people.
The last word that causes me to ponder is "truth". God's Word is filled with divine directions on how to order my days. Since my goal is to glorify and enjoy Him I need to soak myself in Scripture and pursue the guidance the Spirit grants me there.
Here's my fresh action plan for the week. How about giving it a try with me?
1. Apply myself.
2. Seek integrity.
3. Honor Truth.
Hey! I thought Joe was talking to ME! Amazing how God does that for us. ;)
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