Christian Devotional – January 13, 2017

I like to see results. I am very driven and motivated by seeing the results of what I am doing, however, that generally means that I’m expecting something to happen very soon after whatever it is that I’ve been doing. Today we’re looking at purpose that doesn’t show immediate results. Read 2 Timothy 1:1-7.

Timothy certainly was well on his way to accomplishing his purpose and Paul was writing to him to help encourage him along the way. However, Paul also mentions Timothy’s mother and grandmother, Eunice and Lois, He commends them for having fulfilled their purpose by training and teaching young Timothy, so now Timothy is better equipped to fulfill his purpose.

I’m sure that in the moment, Eunice and Lois did not see results from all they were teaching Timothy. They may have had no idea why they were spending all the time they were investing in Timothy, yet they continued to do that and ultimately Timothy had a great ministry proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ. They were part of that, but they certainly had to wait many years before they saw the results of their training. It’s possible that if they had passed away, they didn’t even get to see with their own eyes the results, but the results were there nonetheless.

Sometimes, the purpose that God has given us far outreaches the timeline that we can imagine and we may not see immediate results for what we are doing. However, one thing we can be sure of, when God is involved and directing our purpose, He has the bigger picture and a grander timeline in mind and we can rest assured that even when we don’t see the reason or the results, God is still working and moving through us to fulfill His purpose, so we don’t need to get discouraged. What lasting impact has God given us as part of His purpose for us today?