All of her life Melissa wanted to be a school teacher. It was a dream come true when she enrolled in college and actually began to prepare for a life of teaching. She wanted to be the best teacher any pupil ever had.
She decided to write Thomas Carlyle, a world famous historian, and ask his advice. She wrote, “Tell me, sir, what is the secret of successful teaching?”
His reply was simple, “Be what you would have your pupils to be. All else is unblessed mockery!”
What a reminder for Christians. Though our words are important, our life is a much stronger lesson about who Christ is and what He can do than anything we can ever say. Said Paul to Timothy, “Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith and your purity.”
Timothy was a young pastor and under much scrutiny. Paul knew the pressure that he faced and wanted him to be an example to his church in everything that he said or did. Wisely, Paul warned him that only those who lived lives that were modeled after Christ would be worthy examples and effective teachers of the Good News.
And if we read Paul’s words carefully, we will notice that every aspect of life is mentioned: speech, behavior, love and faith as well as pure thinking and living.
Prayer: We often forget, Lord, that we are always Your model for the world to see. May our faith be strong, our thoughts pure and our lives modeled after Your Son. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Scripture for Today: 1 Timothy 4:12 Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith, and in purity.
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