Leather pants sounded like such a good idea.
Leather was a fashion statement with coats and for an extremely short time in
pants. I think Scrubs did a great episode about leather pants with JD and Turk
and how when they got money, they got leather pants. It ends up they were
extremely stiff and grabbed the skin, instead of a night out, it was a night in
for the TV doctors. Genuine leather can last for a while, fake leather cannot.
I once had a fake leather jacket that was beautiful and Michigan State. I paid
the price as it was imitation, within two months this awesome jacket was
literally shredding. Sometimes there is a huge difference between genuine and
not so genuine.
Paul was making this journey telling people
about Jesus, he couldn’t be everywhere so he trained people to be there. One of
the people he trained and sent out was Timothy. This is a line about what he
thought of Timothy, “I have no one else like him, who will show genuine concern
for your welfare.” Another way this is put, “I have no one quite like Timothy. He is
loyal, and genuinely concerned for you. Most people around here are looking out
for themselves, with little concern for the things of Jesus. But you know
yourselves that Timothy’s the real thing. He’s been a devoted son to me as
together we’ve delivered the Message.” Timothy was
a great help and an asset.
Timothy was genuine it’s something we can
strive to be like. The word in the original Greek Bible is legitimately,
meaning to possess purported good character or quality. What a great statement
someone else said about Timothy. Timothy was someone that looked out for others
interest and cared for others. What if we did this?
I have been blessed by a ton of genuine
people in my life. From my awesome wife Hailee to my large extended family and
friends, I have numerous genuine people in my life. If something bad happened,
I have a ton of people in my life that will be there for me. My goal is to be
able to return the favor.
Timothy was an encourager and that is what we
can all strive to be. Showing genuine concern for one another. What a different
that can make in our lives at home, work, in public if we started to do this.
Make a genuine difference in the world.
Have a great day.
