What are you waiting on?
This past weekend, I had the opportunity to be part of Downline Ministries’ conference on discipleship. Discipleship is what changed the trajectory of my husband’s life, my life, and our ministry. Almost twenty years ago, the Lord brought a man into our life who exploded our understanding of what it meant to spend time with God and follow Him. If only every Christian would be blessed by a “Paul” or, in our case, a Clyde. Every believer would be so much stronger in their faith if someone would be faithful to pour into their life in the same way that Jesus modeled in His relationships with the disciples.Part of the burden falls on us. We need to seek out someone further down the road in their walk with God and ask her to allow us to learn from her. Yet there are times when we can find ourselves without that discipler we need. So, what are we to do then?I recently found myself encouraged by Paul’s instructions to Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:12-16. Timothy was waiting on Paul’s arrival and Paul knew the younger Timothy could use some instruction and encouragement as he waited. If you’re at a place where you wish someone would pour into you, I hope this will give you hope and direction as you wait.Here is the first of four things we must do while we wait on our Paul:
Be wise
In verse 12, Paul urges us to be an example in our speech, in our conduct, in our love, in our faith, and in our purity. While we wait, we have to be careful not to discredit ourselves. Just because we’re lacking a person to sharpen us, we’re not without sharpening from God’s Word.Ask yourself:
- Do your words honor the Lord?
- Do your words reflect a heart that is seeking Him?
- Where are you not above reproach?
- If someone were following you around and watching how you treat the people in your office or in your own family, would it discredit the message of Christ that you’re supposed to be demonstrating?
- Do you only have faith when life is all green lights and answered prayers?
- Do you dress and speak in a way that honors the Lord and guards men from stumbling?
- Does what you post on social media cause others to struggle or does it point them to Christ?
Paul also tells Timothy, “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching.” In our flesh, we are pros at keeping a watch on everyone else and quick to give a pass to ourselves. I urge you to allow your walk with God to be about you and your walk. When you’re in God’s Word, be sure to ask Him how He wants you to apply His word to your present circumstances. If we aren’t careful, we can open God’s Word and gain some good facts and insights, but never confront the parts of us that demand refining.While we desire a discipler to sit down with us each week, every single one of us has a discipler in the form of the Holy Spirit. He is our helper. Don’t neglect Him as you wait. twitter | facebook