SS. Timothy and Titus

January 26,2004

by Rev. Herbert Nichols

These saints were brought to the Christian faith through the influence of St. Paul. Timothy’s mother, like Paul, had been a convert from Judaism. Titus on the other was completely of gentile lineage. Paul entrusted to Timothy the care of the Church at Ephesus, and to Titus the church on the Island of Crete. Both at various times served as emissary, partner or co-worker. For Paul, delegation was not a problem, once he found the person suited.

The purpose of delegation is to become freed up in order to draw in that Holy Breath, and secondly, to be available elsewhere since no one, not Paul, not even Jesus, could be everywhere at once.

Have you ever thought of availability and delegation as virtues, a part of the process of becoming holy? Without delegation we have to’ all or it won’t be done right. Since I’m not God, I can’t be ever Correct; you are not God, and only He can be everywhere, but He delegates, not because He needs rest, but to set an example for us.

Today we live, not as if we are part of the Divine fabric of I-Amness, but some piece of I "gotta" cloth torn to shreds in every direction, because everyone else has "gotta" piece of me.

There’s the e- mail and the cell phone, and the voice mails, and the door bells, and the wristwatch chimes. How did people ever live without this stuff? Convenience demands a hefty price. Availability demands a hefty price.

Jesus didn’t have all these gismos, but the gospels tell us clearly that he knew how to live with constant pressure and demands. He knew when to be available and when to retreat into the mountains alone, in the solitude of prayer, accompanied only by angels or sometimes with his three closest companions, Peter, James, and John.

On the mountain side outside Capernaum he spent a whole day ministering to the physical and emotional needs of thousands. At the end of the day, conscious that they were hungry and had no food left to eat, He did not leave them wanting. Then he disappeared.

How did he balance the needs of the crowds with the needs of his family who thought he was out of his mind? What decisions did Jesus make with respect to his own needs for prayer, for relaxation, for the demands of human health?

How do you balance the demands of your work schedule and those of your family and those of growth in your personal spiritual life? How do you find availability for it all? Which is the first to be dis-ed? Which has the least priority? Would you be shocked if the answer to those two questions were the same? All these questions make wonderful Bible study, whether in a group or alone, but it’s the follow up that will make the difference.