I Timothy 5:11

"But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry..." I Timothy 5:11

I spent a good deal of time last week thinking about, pondering, and meditating on this verse. Why would I choose such an abstract selection to spend so much time thinking about, you ask? Because I was told to.

In an email I received from a good friend (to fully appreciate this story, you should know that this good friend is an unmarried young lady) they told me they were praying for me from I Tim. 5:11 and went on to say that they were praying that I would be strengthened to run from anything less than His best.. etc. So, I looked up the passage and read it. I blinked my eyes and re-read it. My eyes grew large and my eyebrows raised. I was confused. And a little distressed.

One of my first thoughts and hopes was that she clearly gave the wrong reference. I flipped over to 2 Timothy, but that book only has 4 chapters!! I then began to try to think outside the box, wondering what she may be trying to say with this verse. I've come to admire her knowledge of scripture and her ability to dispense passages from memory and expound on them, but this was a whole new level of depth.

"So.. Am I the young widow here? She IS praying that I would run from anything less than his best.. Is she saying that if I desire marriage I'm not desiring what's best? Is she saying my other passions are drawing me away from Christ? What makes her think I desire marriage? Is SHE the young widow?! That would make a little more sense, but neither of us have been married, to my knowledge. But that scenario doesn't make as much sense in the context of what she followed the verse with.. Am I somehow drawing her away from Christ? Does SHE desire to marry?! AAAUGH!! I am SO confused! I feel like she's using a pretty straightforward verse, given the context, and taking a LOT of creative liberties with the interpretation. But she's not Baptist, so maybe she can do that. (HA!)"

I went to bed that night with no conclusions on how to receive that verse. The next morning, still completely perplexed, I recruited the assistance of the most Christ-like man you or I know. My dad. In an email with the subject line titled, "Care to interpret?" I pasted the paragraph from the email along with the remarks, "This was sent to me by a young lady yesterday. Trying to understand what the 5:11 passage is about.."

I scooted off to class, fully confident that my father would come through for me. I was right. As I was waiting for my second class to begin I checked my email and found a message from my father with these words, "A quick response.....she must have meant 6:11..................5:11 would be quite disturbing......6:11 has the words she included in the message........"

I quickly pulled out my Bible and flipped to I Timothy 6:11, which reads, "But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness." That fit with what she was saying SO much better.

I replied back to my father, "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! Oh man!!!!!! I figured it was a mistaken passage, but I looked to 2 Tim... Didn't think about a different chapter. YES, 5:11 WAS somewhat disturbing. 6:11 is better. Much better. I'm losing it right now. No bearing."

The mystery was solved! Unfortunately I was in a quiet classroom, unable to unleash the uproarious laughter that had immediately welled up inside me. I sent a quick email to my friend saying, "I'm going to have to call you later. Your email has just been immortalized as an instant classic in my heart. Oh mercy, I'm having a hard time not laughing.."

After I scooted home in between classes I walked in my door and doubled over in the kitchen laughing, unable to catch my breath from this priceless gem of an incorrect scripture reference. Later that night my friend and I did have a very pleasant talk on the phone, and my smiling continued well into the night. I can say with confidence that during my time in Minnesota, no event has produced more laughter for me.