Genuinely Concerned For Your Welfare
Therefore, my beloved, just as you
have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my
absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who
is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Do all things without murmuring and
arguing, so that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without
blemish in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine
like stars in the world. It is by your holding fast to the word of life that I
can boast on the day of Christ that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. But
even if I am being poured out as a libation over the sacrifice and the offering
of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you – and in the same way you
also must be glad and rejoice in me.
I hope in the Lord Jesus to send
Timothy to you soon, so that I may be cheered by news of you. I have no one
like him who will be genuinely concerned for your welfare. All of them are
seeking their own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. But Timothy’s worth you
know, how like a son with a father he has served with me in the work of the
gospel. I hope therefore to send him as soon as I see how things go with me;
and I trust in the Lord that I will also come soon.
Whatever you can be to those who love
you, you should try to be a loving and caring coach. In the scriptures Timothy
appeared to be timid and fearful, but Paul considered him proven and dependable
in guiding others.
Spiritual coaching is not just telling
people how to accomplish great things for God. It begins with caring for them
and earning the right to be heard. Then, with a keen eye and a kind word, we
can encourage others in the way of faith. Any Christian can become a spiritual
coach by the grace of God.
Genuine
concern for others is a mark of a great spiritual coach.
Our Daily
Bread – March 10, 2006