October 7, 2010

"For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." (2 Timothy 1:7)


What does a spirit of timidity look like? When it comes to living our faith, a spirit of timidity usually doesn't look like anything - and that's the problem. I imagine you have probably noticed that in these "Choir Devotions," that the "Word of God" is always bold - the Bible passages are always in bold print. This is done to attract special attention to them because the words of the inspired writers of the Word of God are more than just words: "our gospel came to you not simply with words, but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and with deep conviction." (I Thessalonians 1:5) The opposite of timidity is boldness. When it comes to matters of living our faith, when we act on the spirit of boldness that God has given us, then we ourselves are bolded, so that when others look at us we attract special attention, not to ourselves, but through ourselves to our God and to his power and to his love that he has revealed to us in his Word.

If we're honest with ourselves, we will confess that sometimes sin causes us to have more of a spirit of timidity than a spirit of boldness when it comes to wearing and sharing our faith? It's easy to be bold on Sunday morning when we are with fellow believers, but what about on Monday morning when we are with those who we might feel embarrassed to boldly share our faith with, because we are worried about what they might say to us, or we are worried about what they might say behind our backs later on? Or what about Tuesday morning when we are with those who think that faith is outright foolishness? "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." (I Corinthians 1:18) The message of the cross doesn't make sense to the unbeliever, and the Christian who displays a Spirit of timidity doesn't help with the unbeliever's perception of a foolish, senseless gospel. There's nothing that confuses the watching world more than when one of us fails to be bold in our faith - when we just blend in with all the other characters and act as though we have no reason to be bold. The Christian author Brennan Manning put it this way, "The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door, and deny Him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” This quote might not be entirely true, but it does give us something to think about. A spirit of timidity in a Christian doesn't leave those around them simply unaffected by the positive- it actually affects them and infects them with more of the negative.

So, how can we shed our timidity and boost our spirit of boldness? By digging into that very same message that the unbeliever thinks is foolish, because for us it's the power of God - it's the power that inspires and equips us with a "spirit of power." Later on in 2 Timothy, Paul writes, "All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17) When we are strengthened by the power of the Word, we are equipped for every good work and we can shed our timidity and say with boldness, "I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16) Now that's the spirit!

God didn't choose us and give us faith for us to be timid in living and sharing that faith. God equips us with all the necessary tools and inspiration to live our faith boldly. When we operate with the spirit of boldness that God has given us, and that lives within us, then we ourselves will be bold among the other characters - bold and attracting attention. We will stand out and what makes us tick will stand out. Our prayer should be that those watching see through us to the God that motivates our very spirit, so that He will be bolded.

May His spirit live within me,
As I seek the lost to win,
And may they forget the channel,
Seeing only Him. (CW:467 )