2 Timothy 1:6-11
6 For this reason, I remind you to stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition of my hands.
7 For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.
8 So do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord, nor of me, a prisoner for his sake; but bear your share of hardship for the gospel with the strength that comes from God.
Paul wrote this to Timothy from Prison in Rome. Timothy was Paul’s student and a companion for many of his missionary journeys, and eventually became bishop of Ephesus. Though most of us don’t have the apostolic calling that Timothy had, we can learn a lot from this message:
- Paul calls on us to fan our spiritual gifts into flame. God gives us the spiritual gift, but it takes effort for us to cooperate with God’s gift and build a spiritual fire.
- God didn’t give us a spirit of timidity, (some translations use this instead of “cowardice in v 7), but one of power, love, and self control. We can have confidence that God will guide us as we use our spiritual gifts, and we should not worry about what the world thinks of them.
- We are not to be ashamed of our testimony to our Lord. To me, that means that we are called to share our own personal testimonies through our daily lives. Sometimes that means simply living as a light, but it also means to be ready to share with someone else your personal experience of what God has done in your life.
- We will have hardships, but we can bear them with the strength that comes from God.
- We are to go to God for strength during times of trouble, and we may well learn some spiritual lessons that we can share with others down the road.
