By David ReayWednesday 28 Dec 2022LifeWords DevotionalsDevotionsReading Time: 2 minutes
Timothy, please come as soon as you can. Demas has deserted me because he loves the things of this life and has gone to Thessalonica. Crescens has gone to Galatia, and Titus has gone to Dalmatia. Only Luke is with me. Bring Mark with you when you come, for he will be helpful to me in my ministry. (NLT)
When we recall the pains and pleasures of our lives, chances are that other people have brought the pain, and other people have brought the pleasures. We were made for relationships with other people, but those other people are just like us: imperfect.
Near the end of his life, Paul notes that a man called Demas has let him down. Many of us know what that is like. We put our trust in someone, figured we were companions on the journey, but something happened to separate us. Our mutual fallibilities, or perhaps just one person’s weakness caused the split.
Then again, Paul wants Mark to be with him. This is interesting because back in the book of Acts, Paul feels Mark badly let him down and so does not want to embark on a missionary journey with him. This caused problems between Paul and his colleague Barnabas.
Yet it seems there has been a change. Through the grace of God, Mark and Paul have been reconciled. So, one close relationship in the present has been ruptured, and one previously ruptured relationship has been restored. Such is the crazy mixture that characterises our own relationships.
Whenever we connect with others, we face the possibilities of pain and pleasure. We can’t have one without the other. Whatever human beings come across our path, we can safely assume they are all too human, and all too capable of bringing both pain and pleasure.
Blessings
David