Prayer – Lord, I hear. Don’t be afraid. You are
with us always. No fear. Thank you.
For God has not given us a spirit of fear and
timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. So never be ashamed to tell
others about our Lord. And don't be ashamed of me, either, even though I'm in
prison for him. With the strength God gives you, be ready to suffer with me for
the sake of the Good News. For God saved us and called us to live a holy life.
He did this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from
before the beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. And now
he has made all of this plain to us by the appearing of Christ Jesus, our
Savior. He broke the power of death and illuminated the way to life and
immortality through the Good News. 2 Timothy 1:7-10
Meditate on God’s plan.
God saved us and called us to live a holy life. He did
this, not because we deserved it, but because that was his plan from before the
beginning of time—to show us his grace through Christ Jesus. This is what
Paul wrote to Timothy, whom he was mentoring and discipling. When we think about
God’s plan, we have to remember it was in place before even the world was created. In one
of his last prayers, Jesus pleaded with His Father for His disciples to see the
glory and know that God loved Him even before the world began. God had a plan
even then…before the fall of Adam and Eve.
See the glory of the Lord.
Experience unity in your relationship with Jesus.
"I have given
them (His disciples) the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are
one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity
that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you
love me. Father, I want these whom you have given me to be with me where I am.
Then they can see all the glory you gave me because you loved me even before
the world began!” John 17:22-24
No
fear. God’s given us power, love, and self-discipline. The King James Bible
translates self-discipline as just “discipline.” Strong’s definition
(4994) adds self-control. I like that since it is part of the Fruit of the
Spirit (Galatians 5:23) and not only is it easily recognizable, but it is
easily within our reach. If you feel you are not “in control”…like a kid
nervously bouncing their foot, it is easy to remind yourself…or the child, to
simply stop bouncing that foot. Ask God to help you. Control is achieved.
Self-control via self-discipline. I think it is only with the power of the Holy
Spirit that this whole action is achieved—especially if it is a sin issue with
which you are dealing. Remember, God wants us to be holy, pure, like Him. The
Fruit of the Spirit in self-control is achievable—and we do not have to experience
fear or even timidity in the process.
Now,
to experience the power. It needs to be God-given. Fear can be
evident…but with God everything is possible…and that includes His power and
love in situations where fear can be abolished. I pledged to “give up fear” for
Lent. That’s going pretty well—no fear—but I’m sure it is only with God’s help.
That spirit of timidity is a quality that God needs to work on
in me. I’m not bold like Paul when it comes to getting into conversations where
I can ask others about their relationship to Jesus—if they believe in Him as
their Lord and Savior. If they simply ask about the word “Lord” and what it
means—I have to stop and think about that. What does LORD mean to you? Ruler.
Redeemer. God. King. He is that at a spiritual level for now…and one day Jesus
will be the great Lord of Lords over the Heavens and earth, physically. I am
subject to Jesus—I intentionally choose Him daily as my Savior and Lord. The
result of my choice is not only becoming part of Jesus’ family…but it
guarantees eternity with Him. Those who do not choose Jesus as their Lord and
Savior ultimately choose to spend eternity apart from Him…which will banish
them to Hell. That could or should create fear. Fear of the future—fear of
being cast into a lonely, very hot. and vile place. I choose instead to love
the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength, with the hope of
an eternity in the presence of Jesus—walking on streets of gold—and serving the
greatest King of Kings.
Choose
Jesus. Choose power, love, and self-discipline as you live a holy life.
Verse of Salvation ~ So think clearly and exercise self-control.
Look forward to the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ
is revealed to the world. 1 Peter 1:13
Revised
from March 14, 2022
© 2023 Text, photos, and illustrations by Mickey M. Hunacek. All
rights reserved.
All scripture quoted from the New Living Translation (NLT) unless
otherwise noted.
New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale
House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream,
Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Biblical search from Blue Letter Bible - http://v3.blueletterbible.org/search.cfm.
Books by Mickey M.
Hunacek
Available as e-books or paperbacks at Amazon.com
Parenting Day By Day - Daily Devotional for Building Character
Coins in the Bible: New Testament Stories
No comments:
Post a Comment