“You are aware of the fact that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes. The Lord grant mercy to the house of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me and was not ashamed of my chains; but when he was in Rome, he eagerly searched for me and found me.” (2 Tim 1:15-17)
When you read through 2 Timothy 1, there are a couple verses that stand out. The ones at the top of this post are where Paul wrote to Timothy about people who had abandoned him, and then one who stood by him. It seemed unusual for Paul to call out people who had abandoned him personally, in the context of all he had been writing about serving God & following Jesus. Why was Paul calling attention to himself and people who had abandoned him, but not providing any details other than that they “turned away from” him? After calling out two people by name (aren’t you glad your parents didn’t consider these names for you?) Paul then in the same passage calls out Onesiphorus as one who was faithful to him.
What was going on here? Let me tell you a story I found in an article by Charles Swindoll, and then try to tie it all together:
Stored in a safe place at the Library of Congress is a small blue box. The label reads: “Contents of the President’s pockets on the night of April 14, 1865.” That was the fateful night on which President Abraham Lincoln was assassinated. The box contains five things:
(1) A handkerchief embroidered “A. Lincoln”;
(2) A country boy’s pen knife;
(3) A spectacles case repaired with string;
(4) A purse containing a $5 bill—in Confederate money!
(5) Some old and worn newspaper clippings.
The clippings wrote about the great deeds of Abraham Lincoln. One of them reports a speech by John Bright, a British statesman, saying that Abraham Lincoln is one of the greatest men of all time.
That is not news for us who live over a century later. We all know that Lincoln was a great man. But in 1865, the jury was still out. The nation was divided and Lincoln had fierce critics on both sides as he made decisions that he hoped would restore the Union. Remember, Lincoln hadn’t read the history books on himself! There is something poignant about picturing this lonely figure in the Oval Office reaching into his pocket and spreading out these newspaper clippings as he re-read the encouraging words of a man who believed that Lincoln was a great man. It gave him the courage and strength to go on. People, especially leaders, need encouragement!
Why did this story speak to me? Remember that Paul wasn’t writing with the idea that his letters would form the majority of the New Testament and would be read by Christians around the world for centuries. All he knew was that he was imprisoned, likely facing death, that Christianity was being persecuted. He was seeking to encourage Timothy and others he wrote to keep them strong in the faith. In this verse he was remembering two who had abandoned him, and then remembering Onesiphorus who had not only stuck with him, but had sought him out in prison. We will never know the risks he took to find Paul – even being associated with Paul and acknowledging that he knew him put Onesiphorus’s life in danger, yet he sought Paul to encourage him. When you think about it, what did he really do to encourage Paul? What he did was show up! There probably wasn’t much he could do for him in prison, but what he did was show up and let Paul know that he wasn’t forgotten about. Many times to a friend in need that’s all we need to do. Just showing up when someone is having a tough day means a lot.
Today we have the ability to “show up” for people in many ways for we now have friends and acquaintances in places that aren’t possible for us to visit personally, so we can reach out with a phone call, a message on Facebook, an email, etc. We don’t need to worry about saying the right thing. Paul spoke of being refreshed. The Greek word here uses the idea of a breath of fresh air, so we know that Onesiphorus sought to lift his spirits. I don’t think that he downplayed the seriousness of Paul’s situation, however I can picture both of them together looking to God’s faithfulness, and focus on the hope Christ gave them.
God is calling us to look for those around us who need encouragement today, those would might feel like they are all alone in whatever they are battling.
Dead Man Walking 
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