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HOW DID YOU SEE GOD THIS WEEK AS YOU FOLLOWED HIM?

WHAT DID GOD SAY IN HIS WORD?

Opening Question:

In challenging or lonely times, we often feel a need for recharge or refreshment. How do you get your strength back when you’ve been depleted?

Paul encourages Timothy to be strengthened by Jesus and suffer as a good soldier of Christ in our passage from Sunday. Let’s read it again:

1 You then, my child, be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, 2 and what you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.

3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him. 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules. 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

Reflect Together:

Paul tells Timothy to “be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus” (2:1). What does that mean? How can someone be strengthened by Jesus’s grace? What is the process for that and how do you know?

How many generations of faith-transmission does Paul mention in verse 2? Do you normally think of the mission you have in Christ in terms of that many generations of faith? What would look different about how you pursue the mission if you kept this in mind?

WHAT DID GOD SAY TO ME THROUGH HIS WORD?

A good soldier of Christ Jesus keeps their life from being entangled in civilian pursuits (2:4). Is your life focused or entangled? How do you know?

A good athlete for Christ Jesus competes according to the rules (2:5). Would that describe your life? Why or why not?

A good farmer for Christ Jesus works hard to bear fruit (2:6). Do you have a farmer’s diligence in your life of faith? How so?

WHAT DOES GOD WANT ME TO DO ABOUT IT?

Consider the price of multiplication (2 Tim. 2:3-7). What changes would have to happen in your life to make this a value? Pick a starting spot and make a plan to take one step toward this life change this week. Consider using our Lent Practices of “Eating with Others” and “One Hour Conversation with a Friend” to invest in relationships where you can participate in multigenerational discipleship.

Have you been trying to refresh and strengthen yourself without going to Jesus for his grace? Consider how you can go to Jesus for your strength instead of other sources that do not provide what you need to follow him faithfully.