Paul was able to see in Timothy a genuine character that he found in no one else. I believe that is why this young pastor is mentioned so much in Paul's writings. It's similar to when God told Samuel to anoint David as King. He had to go beyond the physical and first impressions. God was showing Samuel and also us that we need to look at the heart. He realized as the time past that character inside us is more important. Paul tells Timothy to "run from all these evil things, follow what is right and good" vs.11. A person needs to be in the right mind and heart. This is where being brought up in a healthy godly home is so vital. Paul acknowledge this importance in 2 Timothy. I realize that working on good character is essential in our lives and the lives we need to take care of. The bible is the best source to find these treasures.
It can be a great blessing to be rich but often times it seems more of a curse. What I have seen so far is those that love God and are not super rich or poor seems to be in a better place in life and their relationship to God. In Proverbs 30:8-9, this an named Agur give wise advise about money. He prays to God for "neither poverty nor riches. If I grow rich I may deny you and say "Who is the Lord?" and if I am poor, I may steal and thus insult God's Holy Name." The only thing we know about Agur is he is a teacher from Lemuel's Kingdom. He is definitely a wise teacher. Paul goes on to say those that are rich should be rich in good works and give generously to those in need. It is sad that rich people are known to be stingy and rarely give. If they do give, it it is for their person gain. What all of us should do is what Paul points out in vs. 19,. Let's do what is good for God and we will be storing up treasures in heaven.
One of my favorite song is "Eye of the tiger". It was the theme song to the movie Rocky 3. As this song is playing in the background you can see Rocky, who was badly defeated by Clubber Lang, gaining the confidence as he trains for a rematch. His spirit starts to believe that it's possible to beat his opponent. When I hear that song, my spirit also gets uplifted and causes a positive action and an attitude of "I can do this with Christ". Paul tells young pastor Timothy to realize that God has given him a Spirit of power, love, and self discipline. This is true power because it is from God. It is a gift, a Spiritual gift. Paul says in vs. 6, "fan into flames" these Spiritual gifts. That means we have to believe these gifts are not dead, but are like embers still red hot. These wonderful gifts God has given to us is activated, or fanned into action, by faith. It's time to get back up and know this battle is not done. God's will help us to over come our fears and give us power to defeat the enemies of darkness. God will knock them out and we will become victorious.