Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me—a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.
2 Timothy 1:13-14

Dear God, I wonder what it was like to be a disciple of Paul. I mean, the guy was in prison and seemed to completely accept the idea that that is where you had him. Society considered Paul a radical to the extent that it put him in jail and ultimately killed him. I never thought of it before, but that fact had to be sitting in the back of Timothy’s mind all of the time. Would that be his fate as well? Would listening to Paul’s teaching and loving you land him in prison? What kind of a life can one build with that?

I have to admit that I just can’t relate to this, and I’m grateful for it. My faith in and worship of you doesn’t cost me very much in terms of material things. In my community, I am able to live out my faith without disruptions to my marriage or my work. I’m not looking over my shoulder to see if someone is ready to throw me in jail, so listening to Paul’s teaching through scripture has only upside for me.

Father, maybe my faith in you costs me more than I realize, but right now, sitting here, it feels like an amazing gift. I’m sorry for when I let you down, get petty, or try to promote myself over others. I’m sorry when my ego takes control. I want to be all yours so that I only think of your glory and not my own.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen