Be Still and Know Daily Bible Devotion

2 Timothy 1:7
God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love and self-discipline.
The apostle Paul wanted his young friend Timothy to be the best. There was no question that Timothy was going to have to face enormous challenges. He would be continually confronting opponents to the Christian faith, and he would also have to face up to issues of church organisation and discipline. He had a tough job ahead of him, and Paul knew it was vital that he was neither fearful nor timid. From the references to Timothy in Paul’s first letter to him and in 1 Corinthians 16:10-11, we get the impression that he was quite a sensitive person and probably naturally inclined to be timid. Paul knew that this could be a terrible handicap in his leadership role. The fear of other people or of failure will always greatly restrict a leader’s effectiveness.
God doesn’t want fearful and timid leaders but ones who are marked by his power and love and who show self-discipline. The power that a Christian leader needs is not the authoritarian power which orders people about but the gentle, gracious, servant-hearted power which keeps going in the face of overwhelming opposition. It’s the power to keep preaching and caring for people when everyone is unkind and unappreciative. It’s the power to keep loving whatever the circumstances because of the overwhelming love that God has shown us. Love is always at the heart of Christian ministry.
Self-discipline or self-mastery would be crucial for Timothy. He needed to be totally in control of his energies and emotions in order to be effective for God. This might sound like something we are able to achieve by huge human effort, but Paul was clear that that never works. The Stoics of Paul’s day believed that they could transform their lives by sheer determination and effort, but Paul knew it to be a work of the Holy Spirit. Self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit which irresistibly grows in the person who allows the Holy Spirit to take control.
Question
In what specific ways do you need God’s power, love and self-discipline at the moment?
Prayer
Father God, I thank you that you have given me your Holy Spirit. Help me to allow him to transform every part of my life. Amen

2 Timothy 1:5-6
“I remember your genuine faith, for you share the faith that first filled your
grandmother Lois and your mother, Eunice. And I know that same faith continues
strong in you. This is why I remind you to fan into flames the spiritual gift God gave
you when I laid my hands on you.”
When I was a boy, one of the great pleasures of Saturday afternoons was that I would
light a bonfire with my dad. I came to love the smell of bonfires, probably because it
reminded me of those happy moments. The greatest pleasure of all was the process of
getting the fire going. Sometimes we struggled, but then by fanning the flames carefully
we would have the joy of seeing the fire take hold. Paul used this image to speak of his
longing for Timothy’s faith to grow. It wasn’t enough that he had a godly grandmother
and mother. He needed to have a strong faith himself, so the flames needed to be
carefully fanned.
Through the centuries, many people seem to have looked at Christianity as a club, as if
all that matters is being a member because then you will have your ticket for heaven.
However, the New Testament presents Christian faith as something very different. It
depends upon a personal relationship with God. Because it’s a relationship, and no
relationship can stand still, it is either getting stronger or weaker. That was very much
the apostle Paul’s thinking. He was determined that his young friend Timothy should
grow in faith, and that wasn’t going to happen without determination and careful
planning.
I wonder what you are doing to fan the flames of your faith. We all have a different
relationship with God, so I can’t suggest only one way of achieving this, but here are
some great ways of fanning the flames: spending time with God has to be number one.
Setting aside time to read the Bible, to pray and to reflect is incredibly valuable. Give
yourself enough space and time to listen to God. It is also important to spend time with
other Christians. Worshipping with them is great, but so too is talking with them. When
we go it alone, we can easily assume that we are the only ones with temptations and
problems to face, but when we have an honest relationship with Christian brothers and
sisters, we soon discover that we are all in it together.
Question
What are you going to do to fan the flames of your faith over the next month?
Prayer
Loving God, thank you that love me so much that you want my relationship with you to
become stronger. Help me to take steps to make that happen. Amen

2 Timothy 1:3
[The apostle Paul wrote:] “Timothy, I thank God for you – the God I serve with a
clear conscience, just as my ancestors did. Night and day I constantly remember
you in my prayers.”
Paul’s second letter to his young friend Timothy is deeply moving. Paul knew that he
was close to death and was keen to do everything he could to encourage, strengthen
and direct Timothy in his ministry. He knew it was absolutely vital that Timothy had a
clear conscience. When we trudge through life with a guilty conscience, it is an
oppressive burden to bear. I’m sure Paul’s colourful early life had left him with many
sins and failures which weighed heavily on him, and it was out of relief that he could
now declare, as a Christian, that he lived with a clear conscience.
There is a delightful German proverb which runs: “A good conscience is a soft pillow.”
We can sleep soundly when our conscience is clear. No wonder Paul was so keen that
Timothy should share his experience of a clear conscience – he could then get on with
his ministry without being dragged down by guilt and regret. George Washington, the
first president of the USA, got to the heart of the matter when he wrote: “Labour to keep
alive in your breast that little spark of celestial fire, conscience.”
The strength of Paul’s relationship with Timothy comes out in these opening sentences
of the letter. He is longing to meet up again, recalling Timothy’s tears when they last
said goodbye. Paul said that he would be full of joy when they could meet again, and he
expressed his depth of relationship with Timothy in prayer. He said that he prayed for
Timothy night and day. Prayer was not a formal and occasional activity but a continual
stream of loving care and concern. He longed for the best for Timothy, and his prayers
revealed his deep commitment to his young friend.
Question
What are the most effective ways to maintain a clear conscience?
Prayer
Lord God, help me to walk so closely to you that I will be able to serve you with a clear
conscience. Amen

Psalm 98:7-9
Let the sea and everything in it shout his praise! Let the earth and all living things
join in. Let the rivers clap their hands in glee! Let the hills sing out their songs of joy
before the LORD, for he is coming to judge the earth. He will judge the world with
justice, and the nations with fairness.
When we think about praising God, we naturally think of people joining together in
chapels, churches and cathedrals around the world every Sunday. It’s inspiring to think
of millions of people every week sharing in acts of worship. However, the psalmist
doesn’t want us to think that this is the sum total of worship, because he sees the whole
of creation involved in praising God. Nothing is left out! Even the sea joins in praising
God. The rivers clap their hands in glee! It is beautiful poetic language because he is
straining to remind us that absolutely everything is bound to be part of the chorus of
praise because God is so great. He wants to blast open every attempt that we make to
limit the scale and importance of worship.
In our praise, we often think about his greatness as creator and saviour. Here, the
psalmist instead declares that this great outburst of praise to God happens because he
is coming to be the world’s judge, and we can be certain that he will do his judging work
with justice and fairness. There is a very deep craving in all of us for justice. It is always
painful to see unfairness in the world. You don’t have to spend long reflecting on the life
chances of children brought up in poverty, those who have been forced to flee their
homeland or those who have been born in a war zone, to realise that we live in a world
where justice and fairness are a distant dream for many people.
When we join with creation in praising God we are worshipping a God who loves justice,
so it is with excitement that we sing our hymns and songs. We acknowledge that he
alone is the one who can set our world free. As we worship him, we are being actively
recruited by the living God to work for the justice and fairness that he loves so much.
Question
In what ways is God calling you to work for justice in your community?
Prayer
Lord God, I am happy that I join with all creation in singing your praises. I thank you that
you are a God of justice and ask you to show me how I can live justly today. Amen

Psalm 98:1
Sing a new song to the LORD, for he has done wonderful deeds.
His right hand has won a mighty victory; his holy arm has shown his saving power!
I love the fact that God’s people through thousands of years have enjoyed singing. The psalmist had a very clear reason for encouraging people to sing: God’s salvation. Throughout his dealings with his people, he had shown them his ability to save, supremely when he led them out of slavery in Egypt. After 400 years in that land, God set them free in the most dramatic way.
Nothing has changed. Salvation should spur us into singing today. Salvation never changes because God has always been in the business of setting people free from sin, guilt and lifelessness, but the way in which that salvation is experienced will be unique for every individual. I love hearing the testimonies of other Christians, and what always strikes me is that each is a one-off. God comes to us as individuals and meets us in the specific context of our lives, so there is endless variety to the ways in which we encounter him. As a consequence, we always need to be looking for new songs to sing to the Lord. There is nothing necessarily wrong with the old songs, but the creativity of God’s Spirit encourages every generation to look for new ways of addressing their praise to God.
The ways in which churches sing to God these days varies enormously. There are some churches that only ever sing hymns led by an organ, and others that only ever sing songs that have been written during the last few years to the accompaniment of a band. We should embrace and enjoy every form of worship because the different styles of hymns and songs reflect the rich diversity of the Church and remind us of the need for every kind of person to celebrate the salvation which God generously offers to us.
Question
How important is singing in your Christian life?
Prayer
Lord God, I thank you that you have given me something to sing about. I praise you for your gift of salvation to me. Amen