Saturday 10 February, 2018

1 Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, in keeping with the promise of life that is in Christ Jesus, 2 To Timothy, my dear son: Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. 3 I thank God, whom I serve, as my ancestors did, with a clear conscience, as night and day I constantly remember you in my prayers. 4 Recalling your tears, I long to see you, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 I am reminded of your sincere faith, which first lived in your grandmother Lois and in your mother Eunice and, I am persuaded, now lives in you also. 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

I like how Paul mentions the faith of Timothy’s grandmother that was passed on to his mother and then on to Timothy.

I share the same birthday as my grandmother, although she had died before I was born. Sharing a birthday with my grandmother has always felt like a special bond with her to me, though I never knew her. I was told that she was a woman of strong faith in Jesus and she passed that faith on to my Dad, who passed it on to me. I can remember even as a little girl thinking how proud she would be of me following Jesus like she did.

Who are you passing your faith on to? Maybe your natural born children, or maybe your spiritual children, as Paul refers to Timothy here as his son. Paul encourages us to “fan into flame the gift of God” in our lives. Don’t lose sight of our eternal calling to leave a legacy of faith behind in the people who are following us.

Written by Shelley Witt