My first sermon was on the first 9 verses of Joshua, one of my favorite passages in all Scripture. In the congregation was about 20 people, most of whom my wife was related to. It was a great day and I saw it as the beginning of a new season in my life. That it was, just not in the way I expected. But that’s a story for another day.

While Joshua 1:1-9 had been one of my favorite passages for a while, having to teach it to people brought a whole other level of pressure & self-scrutiny. I thought that if I’m going to tell people what we can learn from these verses, I had better know them frontwards & backwards.

And I’ve felt similarly for every sermon I’ve preached and small group I’ve led ever since.

There’s something about being responsible for teaching, guiding, or mentoring another person. In fact, there’s three main things I want to point out.

First, it brings a level of seriousness to your own spiritual walk. You feel a healthy amount of pressure. And that pressure turns into energy with which you dig into God’s word and your own faith. That’s a good & healthy thing.

Second, it fulfills God’s design of the community of believers. God could reach and speak to people in a variety of ways, yet He chooses to use us. When you mentor someone else, you’re taking part in that design, and you can see more fully the picture of how God works. It makes you more alert to His ways and more attuned to His direction.

Third, it blesses the person you’re ministering to. Look at the story of Philip and the Ethiopian in Acts 8. While the Ethiopian is seeking God by reading Scripture, he needs the help of another to truly learn and understand.

At this point in the process of lust-free living, you’ve gone through almost 5 months of curriculum between your small group & the devotional. If you haven’t already, you need to be thinking about bringing on a Timothy . . . someone you can start pouring into[1].

Talk with your Paul about specifically who this could be and what the relationship will look like, but make no mistake, you must stay engaged in this conversation to remain vigilant (1 Pet 5:8). And a great way to do that is by having a Timothy in your life.

In fact, God is calling you to do this.

Are you listening?

Thoughts to Pray/Journal:

1. Who might your Timothy be?
2. What can help improve & take that relationship to the next level?
3. What are some benefits for you having a Timothy?

Reading:

Acts 8:26-40