Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
2 Timothy 4:2, NIV
Recommended Reading: 2 Timothy 4:1-5
Thomas Heelis, an English sailor, did missionary work to India from 1855 to 1910. Once he shipwrecked and the crew was washed up in a small fishing village. Thomas, not one to miss an opportunity, began preaching the Gospel to those villagers.1
Our lives go through various seasons, but we are to be about our Master’s business. When we labor for Christ, we will find some seasons productive and fruitful. We will see a harvest. At other times the work will appear unrewarded and in vain. But remember what Paul said: “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase” (1 Corinthians 3:6).
Let’s labor for the Master from the dawn till setting sun. Let’s preach the Word, in season and out of season. Even misfortune such as shipwrecks can be God’s way of guiding us to someone needing the Gospel.
I thank God that the gospel is to be preached to every creature. There is no man so far gone, but the grace of God can reach him.
D. L. Moody
- Footsteps Worth Following (Echoes International, 2021), 120.
