Fan in to Flame - Acts 16:1-5;1 Timothy 1:18-19 &6:11-21; 2 Timothy 1:1-14

“Fan in to flame the gift of God which is in you…” (2 Timothy 1:6)
 
Love him as I do, Saint Paul cannot have been the easiest person to travel and work with.  Timothy was devoted to LOVE, to the good news about Jesus, and also to Paul.  Timothy was incredibly loyal.  He stuck to Paul through shipwrecks, imprisonments, beatings, humiliation, and poverty.  He even allowed himself to be circumcised as an adult, just so that his Greek ancestry wouldn’t be a barrier to connecting with Jews in the communities they were trying to reach. 
 
Paul took Timothy as his closest travelling companion, entrusted huge swathes of complex pastoral ministry to him, named him as the co-sender of six letters in the Bible, spoke very highly of him to others (“I have no-one else like him”), and requested his company in Rome as he faced death.  If Paul was the pioneering apostle, Timothy is the premier pastor.  He was like Jesus.  His life is a model for all of us.
 
Paul encouraged Timothy that, “the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7  These four attributes are essential for all of us in the Christian life: courage – we mustn’t be anything less than who God has called us to be; power – we must rely on the Holy Spirit, whose power is often revealed in our weaknesses; love – this will keep us from abusing the power God gives us and be our guide in how we do everything that we do; self-discipline – this is about how we develop the skills we’ll need and learn to control our own emotions, attitudes, thoughts and behaviours. 
 
In prayer today we can work through each of these attributes with LOVE.  Let’s ask him to develop each one within us.  We should repent wherever we’ve got these wrong – apologising for our past errors and determining to live LOVE’s way in the future.  I am very aware of having some serious shortcomings in each area.  Together let’s ask the Holy Spirit to show us how we can fan in to flame the gifts that LOVE has placed within each of us.  That’s something we can all help each other with.
 
“the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7