Throughout my ministry, I’ve been blessed with mentors who have helped me to understand my role and the life of a pastor. These have been friends, colleagues, and mentors, both inside and outside the Wesleyan tradition, who have taken me under their arms, and helped me to see something I might not have on my own. They gave me the necessary wisdom I needed to care and serve God and others.

No matter your career of choice, we can probably all think of a mentor or friend who has helped us to navigate our jobs or the challenges of life. We need those friends to help us, to inspire us, and to keep us focus on what is before us.

That is exactly what Paul is doing in our text, this morning, from 1 Timothy 1:12-17. We’re jumping into this letter that is equal parts fascinating and controversial. It is a difficult letter to read, because we struggle with both its content and context. 1 Timothy, along with 2 Timothy and Titus, make up what we call the Pastoral Epistles. These books are a collection of letters where Paul writes the two individuals who made up the next generation of church leaders to encourage them in their ministry. Continue reading “Grace for All”