1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 (NRSV)
Read 1 Thessalonians 2:1-8 on biblegateway.com
Chapter 2You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain, Verse 2but though we had already suffered and been shamefully mistreated at Philippi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition. Verse 3For our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery, Verse 4but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts. Verse 5As you know and as God is our witness, we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed; Verse 6nor did we seek praise from mortals, whether from you or from others,
Verse 7though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her own children. Verse 8So deeply do we care for you that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us.
Devotion
Have you ever done something and then opted not to do it again because the pain outweighed the gain?
When Paul left Philippi he headed off to Thessalonica. One might understand if he chose not to evangelize. He had just been beaten and imprisoned for healing a demon-possessed slave girl. But the gain was the Lord's.
So he kept on.
Making tents to support his mission, Paul and company spent about three weeks in the city and would have stayed longer but for the threat of impending ugliness. Today's verse really gets at the heart of Paul's motivation for what he did—and how it played out. May our willingness to endure suffering be as strong and our motivation be as pure.
Prayer
Come, Holy Spirit. Pour into us your strength, that we might see your will for us in this world and further have the willingness to engage in that mission. We pray, lifting up the name of Jesus Christ our savior. Amen.