Bible Reading Plan | Devotion for the week of July 25, 2021

Weekly reading: 2 Timothy 1-4; Psalm 38-40

Passages referenced: 2 Timothy 1:7

Our 5th, 6th, and 7th graders are at Camp with an Impact (CWAI) this week. If you don’t mind, I’m going to use that as an excuse to talk about camp in this devotional. When I was in college, I worked at Camp Adventure (the location of many years of CWAI). I loved (just about) every minute of it. And I collected quite a few stories through the years. From messy games that were so messy we had to throw out our clothes to nocturnal weeks of camp that meant archery and high ropes by lanterns and tiki torches to officially meeting Denny & Cookie Wilson the night I let their son Nate ride his bike off the high dive (shh, don’t tell my old boss about that) to watching hundreds of students worship and connect with God like never before week after week.

I was reminded of another story this week during our reading. One day while working the high ropes course, we had an interaction with a counselor that has stuck with me all these years. We had gotten all of the students through the course or up the climbing wall, so we were just down to the counselors. One of my coworkers was leading a counselor through the ropes course but facing a bit of a challenge because the counselor was pretty nervous. My coworker started using some of the tricks we had to help people through the course. One thing we often did was share scripture with stalled people. So my coworker began quoting 2 Timothy 1:7, saying, “remember, God has not given you a spirit of fear!” To which the counselor shouted down, “yeah, but He’s also given me a sound mind! And my sound mind is telling me that this is not a good thing to be doing right now!”

Touché, camp counselor. Touché. Now, we could just write that off as another funny little camp story, but I think it’s a great opportunity for us to study, consider, and apply the truth of that verse. So first, we should look at the entire verse: for God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Timothy 1:7, NKJV) Now let’s focus on a few of the key words in the verse:

Spirit – pνεῦμα

The Holy Spirit; the spirit, i.e., the vital principal by which the body is animated; the rational spirit, the power by which the human being feels, thinks, decides; the soul; a spirit

Note:the reference to the Holy Spirit at the end of this section (v14) makes it likely that the section also begins this way here.

Fear – δειλίας

Fear, timidity, fearfulness, cowardice, lack of mental or moral strength, spirit of cowardice, through cowardice, in fear & terror

Power – δυνάμεως

Power, potential for functioning in some way, inherent power, might, strength, force, capability, ability

Love – ἀγάpης

Love, affection, goodwill, brotherly love, benevolence

Sound mind – σωφρονισμοῦ

Sound mind; an admonishing or calling to soundness of mind, to moderation and self-control; the teaching of prudence, advice, improvement; exercise of prudence, moderation, self-discipline, prudence; self-control, moderation

Sources: netbible.org & A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature

The counselor stuck on the high ropes course at Camp Adventure didn’t appreciate the reminder of this verse, but I hope we do today. Whenever we’re feeling anxious or fearful, we can cling to its truth. We have the Spirit of God in us. And that Spirit is always at work – encouraging, guiding, loving, and empowering us. And God’s Spirit doesn’t produce fear, timidity, or cowardice. No, God’s Spirit produces power, strength, might, love, affection, goodwill, sound-mindedness, self-control, and prudence. I hope that we find rest and reassurance in this truth today and always.

If you regularly struggle with fear and anxiety, here are a few more verses you could check out that you might find encouraging: Psalm 46:1, 55:22, 121:1-2; Matthew 6:25-34; Luke 12:22-31; John 14:27, 16:33; Romans 8:38-39; Philippians 4:6-9; and 1 Peter 5:7.

And one last note: don’t forget to be praying for all the campers, counselors, and staff at Camp with an Impact this week. – Sarah Neel