2 Timothy 2:1-10
Plain Old Hard Work

You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs--he wants to please his commanding officer. Similarly, if anyone competes as an athlete, he does not receive the victor's crown unless he competes according to the rules. The hardworking farmer should be the first to receive a share of the crops. Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.

Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, descended from David. This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God's word is not chained. Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they too may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, with eternal glory.

New International Version

Some weeks are just better than others. Some weeks we are able to accomplish what needs to be done, we gain satisfaction from the results we produce, and, encouraged by our successes, we look with anticipation to what we will be able to achieve next week.

This week for me was not one of those weeks. Instead, I couldn't seem to write fast enough to take down all my assignments, I couldn't seem to be where I was supposed to be, and I let down too many people who were counting on me to deliver quality work on time. I couldn't even figure out how to prioritize my assignments, they were coming in so fast, so I felt like an "equal opportunity" slacker who didn't get anything done. My "to do" list for next week reads like a Stephen King novel, and I halfway wish I felt the flu coming on.

It was for times like this, and times much more dangerous and threatening than this, that Paul wrote these words of encouragement to Timothy. This isn't the kind of encouragement I want to read this week, for what I want is to be told to trust the results to God, that I need to balance my frantic work with stillness and quiet reflection, and that this world is temporary and I have riches stored up in Heaven. While all those thoughts are true, I have a strong sense that what I need to read this week is in this passage.

Paul starts this passage by telling Timothy to "be strong in", which is better interpreted to "gain strength from" the grace and blessing that God gives us through Jesus Christ. There are many inferior ways for us to gain strength, including taking satisfaction in a job well done! The truth about this world is we are not capable of seeing what the ultimate outcome of our work will be, for in every success is the seed of a future catastrophe, and in every failure is an opportunity for God to work a miracle. We can only depend on strength that comes from the One who will never let us down.

After reminding Timothy to reach up for God, Paul reminds Timothy to reach out for others. God's plan has always been for us to be strengthened by others and to support others. 1 Kings 19 describes a desperately lonely time in the life of Elijah after he had run from Queen Jezebel, and Elijah tells God that he alone of God's people remains faithful. God surprises Elijah with instructions on three faithful men Elijah will anoint as military leaders, and that these leaders will lead seven thousand men who also have remained faithful to God in overthrowing the sinful king. I know my tendency when times are tough is to withdraw into my own lonely despair, but Paul's instruction to Timothy encourages us that God will provide others to share our burdens.

Paul's most unpopular encouragement to Timothy is work hard and keep working hard. Paul says it is that way in every part of life, that things worth doing require effort, diligence, and discipline, and we cannot afford to think our lives should somehow be different. Hard work alone isn't enough, for we also need focus on what we are doing, like the soldier who abstains from associating with civilians in the country he is occupying. We can't afford to take shortcuts, or we, like an athlete who cheats, will have wasted our efforts. Sometimes we are called to laboriously hard work in our Walk, and we must trust that God always has our best interests in mind.

I believe Paul's instructions to Timothy apply to each one of us, no matter what our vocation. While Timothy and Paul both were pastors, Paul could not afford to be a full-time evangelist, and he made his living making and selling tents while he traveled and preached the gospel. We don't know how Timothy earned his pay, but it is safe to assume he, too, had a secular career. But, Paul would not have considered his life compartmentalized between tentmaking and evangelizing. Every part of life is "set apart" for God's glory, even hemming the edges of tent fabric. With God's leading, every action in life is an opportunity to spread the gospel message--even including Paul's imprisonment as he writes Timothy.

Paul urges Timothy to remember that the people in his church and his community will be influenced, for either good or bad, by every part of Timothy's life. How we handle difficulties and hard work demonstrates our faith more clearly that what we say. Our attitude in tough times shows others either that our confidence is in God's love, or that we are fearful of our own failure.

God's Word tells us to pray for those who are sick or in crisis, but don't forget to pray for people in "ordinary" times, too. Don't save your own prayer petitions for God's help for when you "really need them," either, because it isn't yours to know when what you do could have eternal significance to another person. Our God is always there to help us, and our God uses both miracles and plain old hard work to bring about God's plans here on earth.