Genuine, just like a pair of leather pants

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.

Brand X tastes better than the name brand

Box mac and cheese is my friend. Growing up it was one of my favorite lunches to have. My brother Zach and I would eat four boxes of this at a time. There was one stipulation, we always ate the Meijer’s brand. Our parents raised four kids, money was tight and we were always raised on the off brand stuff. Some of it is better and yes I chose brand x over the named brand stuff every time. What are items you like that are the off brand?

Imitation is not always bad. An off brand is just mentioning I am like this other object in almost every way, but I might be a little different therefore my price is cheaper. Sold. Imitation goes beyond food and goes into life.

1 Corinthians 4:16-17…

“Therefore I urge you to imitate me. For this reason I have sent to you Timothy, my son whom I love, and who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.”

Good people can remind you of good things to do. If someone has a good trait that you like, it’s ok to try and mimic it. Paul is telling this church that if you are living off track, it’s good to imitate people that are going in the right direction especially in spiritual matters. Paul sent Timothy to the church to help keep them on track to what is important. This is why reading the Bible is a great thing. If you want to be like Christ, do what Christ does.

Who are people in life you look up too? What do you look up to them about? Imitate what good people in your life do and you can improve. I look up to some of the most genuine loving, caring people full of grace and mimicking them makes me a better person. Imitation is not always a bad thing in food or in life. What type of person do you want to be and who can you look up at to make it happen? Have a great day.

Circumcision as an adult???

There are some areas of faith I am glad that progressed.

In the past it was the mothers whose faith you took after.

Paul ran into an issue when he met Timothy.

Timothy was a very godly man and Paul wanted him to take him on his mission trip.

There was a problem; his mother was Jewish while his father was Greek.

Why was this problem?

Circumcision.

While in the previous chapter we see where circumcision was not required for salvation (At this time a whole bunch of guys yelled Amen, jk).

Yet with Paul going and ministering to a group of Jewish people, they would always question Timothy because his mom was Jewish, but didn’t raise him in in faithful practices.

Paul had to do something in order to take Timothy with him.

Acts 16:3…

“Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was Greek.”

He had the faith of his mother and if he didn’t do this, it could severely affect their ministry.

Timothy made a huge sacrifice.

Looking up how long the process would take today, it says you aren’t able to do much for about three days and it slowly gets better but you are limited from certain activities for up to a month.

Ouch.

Timothy did that because he believed in this message and wanted to go on this trip.

It was a sacrifice.

What are some sacrifices you make your life?

Is it worth the cost?

Timothy did some amazing things in the Church and this was the start of his journey.

He did this for the gospel message and to go on this amazing trip.

I wonder where the Church would be today without this faithful person willing to make a sacrifice.

Anything worth doing is worth making sacrifices for.

Timothy went through some pain for the greater good.

What pain are you willing to go through for the greater good?

Have a great day.