Yes FM Morning Munch
January 5th
Make it New!
Day 1
Of course we all know as we go into the New Year there are those pesky New Year’s resolutions. All the things that we are going to change…all those things that we are going make new in our lives. Results of an University of Scranton study done a few years ago indicate that only 8% of New Year’s resolutions are brought to a successful conclusion (yeah I know what else do they have to do in Scranton…).
Paul the Apostle knew a young man who was struggling to succeed in his New Year’s resolution to faithfully serve God as the shepherd of a new church plant in the tough, tough city of Ephesus. In fact Timothy just a couple of years earlier wanted to quit and rejoin Paul but in response to this request Paul says “As I urged you upon my departure for Macedonia, remain on at Ephesus so that you may instruct certain men not to teach strange doctrines” (1 Timothy 1:3). What follows is the first of what we call the Pastoral Epistles as Paul lays out some tenets for his young protégé in effective ministry.
Fast forward a couple of years and we see that Timothy is still struggling. Moreover Paul knows that his mentoring days are coming to a close. An unstable emperor will soon send Paul home to be with the Savior he loves above all else. It is with this in mind that Paul opens up this second letter with a New Year’s Resolution that would carry Timothy into his old age and even to martyrdom.
“3 I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience the way my forefathers did, as I constantly remember you in my prayers night and day, 4 longing to see you, even as I recall your tears, so that I may be filled with joy. 5 For I am mindful of the sincere faith within you, which first dwelt in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice, and I am sure that it is in you as well. 6 For this reason I remind you to kindle afresh the gift of God which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”
The New International Version says: 6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.
From the burning bush to the pillar of fire to the flames of Elijah Water Soaked sacrifice to the flames of Acts 2, fire has represented God’s active presence in the lives of men for thousands of years. Paul reminds Timothy that the gift of God’s active presence in his life is the key fulfilling his commitment to serve God in Ephesus. This active presence is the Holy Spirit and it is a gift made to each and every person who comes into a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, accepting Him as Lord and Savior of their lives. Fan this gift into flame, kindle it afresh and see what God will do in your life in 2015.
Fan Into Flame Ministries 
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