The Journey's Map - Keep Planning Ahead

Introduction: Thanksgiving?

Are you prepared for Thanksgiving?

Is your grocery shopping done?

Guest list checked? And checked twice?

Do you have your stretchy pants?

Did you forget the Pumpkin pie?

Is your turkey in the fridge? Your turkey needs about 3-5 days to thaw in the fridge before Thursday.

Have you listed at least 5 things that you are thankful for that you can rattle off at a moment’s notice?

Are you for black Friday shopping?

There is so much to prepare for.

But the truth, it’s not about just being prepared, the true mark of being prepared is being flexible in the moment, because things can probably will go wrong.

Transition to scripture:

The passage that we are looking at this morning is about not just being prepared but staying prepared throughout life.

Paul writes to Timothy near the end of His life with final instructions. I love that so many of these letters are written by older men who have walked with Jesus for many years. They are their final pearls of wisdom. It’s not like some 18 year old kid is writing to us with no life experience telling us how to follow Jesus. But men who served God in their generation are imparting a lifetime of wisdom to us that we might go and do likewise. I love that the gospels also contains the perspective of some of the women as well (particularly John and Luke) and we see their feelings and experiences.

Let’s read what Paul had to say:

I

2 timothy 3:

2 Timothy 3:10–17 ESV

10 You, however, have followed my teaching, my conduct, my aim in life, my faith, my patience, my love, my steadfastness, 11 my persecutions and sufferings that happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium, and at Lystra—which persecutions I endured; yet from them all the Lord rescued me. 12 Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, 13 while evil people and impostors will go on from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it 15 and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. 16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

Verse 17 kind of sums up the purpose of this text: that the man may be complete, equipped for every good work.

And everything before builds into that.

For our big Idea, the main, is less a statement and more a question:

Big Idea: How can I stay prepared for anything on my journey?

Preparation is less about being prepared at the onset and more about being able to adapt and flow with life on the move. It’s more than just being prepared. It’s learning how to keep being prepared.

Ironically this is why I think so many of our youth grow up and leave the church. We tell them what to believe, we somewhat prepared them at the onset of their, but we don’t teach them how to adapt and what to really expect from life.

Spiritual adaptation comes not with time but spiritual maturity. And adaptability doesn’t

So our passage this morning serves a good explanation of how to not just be prepared but how to keep preparing.

Number 1!

1. Follow Good examples. ()

Explanation: Timothy followed Paul through the good and the bad. He was with Him on many of his missionary endeavors.

Timothy was to continue to follow Paul’s example.

Teaching (We don’t deviate from the word of God)

Conduct (Never use your position for sorted gain)

Aim in life (To bring glory to the name of Jesus)

Faith (Believing that it would be better to die than to go on living a lie).

Patience (With people who are blinded)

Love (for God and for others…even his enemies)

Steadfastness (Be bold and never back down from sharing the name of Jesus)

The most important one...

8. Enduring Persecutions and suffering (These are not evidence you are on the wrong path but rather the opposite).

Paul is a great example to follow.

But One thing I love about the Bible is that while it does give us good examples to follow, it also gives us some bad examples to avoid. Or a mixture of both.

Illustration: Take King David for example. David had great faith that even as a young man he confronted the giant goliath and killed him (Good Example). David had great faith that even though he was anointed King believed that God would bring about his kingdom without a civil war and chose exile rather than fight this giant. (Good example). However when David had been king for many years, he had an affair with another man’s wife and she got pregnant. So what did David do, he had her husband murdered and took her to be his wife…problem solved. (Bad Example). However when confronted with his sin, he repented and sought forgiveness with bitter tears. (Good example.)

Acts 13:36 ESV

36 For David, after he had served the purpose of God in his own generation, fell asleep and was laid with his fathers and saw corruption,

Application: Who are your examples to follow?

2. Build off of your Past ()

Explanation: One of the most important words in this passage is this passage and maybe in the whole Bible is the word, “CONTINUE.” In other words you are on the right track so keep going.

Illustration: If you have ever been on a road trip and you aren’t sure if you're on the right road, there is that nagging feeling of doubt where you keep asking, do I keep going and potentially get further off course or do I turn around now. So then you probably also know the feeling when you see a sign that shows you that you are going in the right direction. What a relief that is. It’s actually also a relief when you learn you're going in the wrong direction (the Bible can do that for you too) because you can fix it.

Paul tells Timothy to keep on doing what you’re doing.

Remember what you are thankful for.

Knowing from whom you learned = Grandmother Lois and mother Eunice

What did you learn? = The Sacred writings

What’s the effect? = Able to make you wise for salvation through faith.

Application: What parts of my past do I need to build on? What parts do I need to let go of?

3. Apply the Bible to your life. ()

Explanation: Teaching is broad while reproof, correction and training are more specific goals.

There are lots of books that you can’t or don’t want to apply to your life. The Hunger games

Teaching finds people going in the wrong direction. And when you’re found going in the wrong direction, your stopped and told you’re wrong, that’s called reproof. But you don’t just need to be told that you’re wrong, you need to be redirected (that’s correction) and you need to be pointed on in the correct direction so that you can stay in that direction....that’s called training and it’s ongoing. Training then leads to a completion or readiness for anything that might come your way.

Illustration: Bible knowledge is like muscle. You can fill your head with facts and scripture memory. Flexibility is the application of what you know. Stretching is the tedious preparation that leads to flexibility.

Is there such thing as being over prepared?

Application: How can I better apply the Bible to my day to day life?

The questions: Who are my examples to follow? What parts of my past do I need to build on? How can I better apply the Bible to my day to day life?

The questions: Who are my examples to follow? What parts of my past do I need to build on? How can I better apply the Bible to my day to day life?

Conclusion: You might ask well where do I start?

Start with the Bible.

Find a mentor.

Continue to grow off what you already know.