Men and women, all created by God, have a way of complicating life in various ways.  We overthink or shoot from the hip when cornered for a decision.  Then we second guess our decisions.  With this aspect of overthinking, bitterness creeps in to outline in our minds all that we should have done while life moves on, constantly changing our environment, situation or circumstance.  We live in a fear because we are overwhelmed by all these self-imposed complications.  We blame to world and world leaders.  We blame those near to us.

We make decisions based on lack of knowledge because we didn’t take the time to educate ourselves with truth. 

We also complicate our lives by assuming what other people are thinking without talking to each other.  We base our lives on what we think other people think!  Bitterness, resentment and other bad thinking is built solely on our assumptions.  We envy what each other have in wealth, knowledge, relationships and put down those who have put the work in to be where they are momentarily.  We are jealous of each other’s attention and accomplishments.  We complicate life all by ourselves because of needs of self-satisfaction wanting instant gratification. 

“ALL have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” writes Paul to the Roman believers.  “Believe and you will be saved.”  Paul keeps it simple when it comes to being saved from self and all the ways we complicate our own lives.  Paul sits down and now writes of this simplicity of life with Jesus, as a mentor to a growing leader, Timothy.  (Romans 3:23 and Romans 10:10 as reference.)

Paul tells now tells Timothy in lesson one of leadership and living life for God how to keep it simple. Here’s what we can glean from the mentoring leader—

How do we get off the complicated train of thinking and behaving?

• Know God:  Pray—Be in constant and consistent communication with One and Only God, in Jesus Name.  There is a reason this is number one!

• Know the Message:  Don’t complicate the Word, like the Pharisees and other teachers did while totally missing the Savior!  Study to know the pure, holy, simple Truth of Jesus. 

• GO!:  We are called of God to tell the Simple Truth of salvation, “getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.

• PRAY: Pray with raising holy hands to God asking for his wisdom in all of life.  Jesus kept life simple on earth and reminded us to do the same. We place “yokes” of a complicated life on ourselves, when time alone with Him simplifies life.  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-30) Perhaps, in other words, come to me and I will help you see the Simple Faith of Plain Truth in the simplicity in being with Me, while forgiving you for all the complications you have put upon yourselves.  Oh, friends, camp on this thought. I am.

TIMOTHY—MENTORSHIP

1 Timothy 2, The Message

Simple Faith and Plain Truth

^1-3 The first thing I want you to do is pray. Pray every way you know how, for everyone you know. Pray especially for rulers and their governments to rule well so we can be quietly about our business of living simply, in humble contemplation. This is the way our Savior God wants us to live.

^4-7 He wants not only us but everyone saved, you know, everyone to get to know the truth we’ve learned: that there’s one God and only one, and one Priest-Mediator between God and us—Jesus, who offered himself in exchange for everyone held captive by sin, to set them all free. Eventually the news is going to get out. This and this only has been my appointed work: getting this news to those who have never heard of God, and explaining how it works by simple faith and plain truth.

^8-10 Since prayer is at the bottom of all this, what I want mostly is for men to pray—not shaking angry fists at enemies but raising holy hands to God. And I want women to get in there with the men in humility before God, not primping before a mirror or chasing the latest fashions but doing something beautiful for God and becoming beautiful doing it.

^11-15 I don’t let women take over and tell the men what to do. They should study to be quiet and obedient along with everyone else. Adam was made first, then Eve; woman was deceived first—our pioneer in sin!—with Adam right on her heels. On the other hand, her childbearing brought about salvation, reversing Eve. But this salvation only comes to those who continue in faith, love, and holiness, gathering it all into maturity. You can depend on this.

SO, WHAT WE LEARN—

A simple life begins and ends with prayer.  Surprising?  Is it really surprising that the God of the all wants to listen to His beloved, who He sent His Son, Jesus to die for so we could live forever with Him?  Mm, could life be this simple with the added bonus of His peace? 

“Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.”—Jesus (John 14:27)

Lord,

I repent of complicating our own lives by thinking we know best and think we should do more. I repent of assuming what others think and presuming how they will behave.  I repent of judging, comparing, envying and having jealous thoughts that complicate my thinking and living while robbing myself of your easier yoke of peace, rest, coming to you in an abiding relationship, in constant and consistent communication like this right now!  Thank you for your simple Truth of salvation.  You have humbled me because I believe what you say.   Teach me your ways and I will simply walk in them.

In Jesus Name, For Your Glory, Amen.  Yes!

“…this salvation only comes to those who continue in faith, love, and holiness, gathering it all into maturity. You can depend on this.”  Paul to Timothy—and to us!