Recently I visited an 82-year-old friend from the past. He was feeling low. When we finally got down to why, it was this: he had lost his sense of purpose. How does that happen, and how can we make sure it doesn’t happen to us? He had run out of “spiritual oxygen.”

While in chains, Paul wrote to Timothy about men turning their backs on him. But he also reminded him of the power of having a true friend in hard times. How do we leave fair-weather friendship behind, and why is it critical to our lives as disciples?

Paul recognizes in his letter the faith of Timothy’s mother and grandmother. Who’s missing? His father. And so Paul became his spiritual father. Just as Paul did for Timothy, we, too, are called to stand in the gap for young men who need a spiritual father. But how?

Paul spent more than a decade with Timothy as brothers, co-laborers, and, in a spiritual sense, father and son. He had permission to speak freely into his life. The truth Paul shared with him about hope, suffering, and shame impacts us and our relationships in profound ways…