The apostle Paul, Joni Eareckson, Nick Vujicic, Cori Ten Boom, Chuck Colson, JP Kent, Troy Butler. You may ask what these people all have in common? Most of them you know, but a few you may not know. Let me tell you… each one of these people have been strong witnesses for Christ, proclaimers of the Gospel, but in places of confinement.
The apostle Paul was in prison for preaching the Gospel, Joni Eareckson has been confined to a wheelchair from a diving accident, Nick Vujicic was born without arms and legs, Cori Ten Boom was put in a concentration camp, Chuck Colson was convicted and sentenced to prison for his part in the Watergate scandal, JP Kent (son of Christian speaker, Carol Kent) was sent to prison for killing someone, and my friend and neighbor, Troy Butler, sat in a wheelchair his whole life because of Cebral Palsy. Yet each one of these have been strong witnesses for the Gospel.
Our verse today in 2 Timothy is powerful. Paul tells Timothy that he’s been convicted like a criminal and chained up. But while he’s chained up, the Word of God cannot be chained. I believe that the strongest and most powerful movements of Christ have come from places of confinement. Four of Paul’s letters – Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon – were written from prison. We call them the prison epistles. These people mentioned above have allowed God to use their places of confinement as a springboard for the Word of God.
I know that many of you are in places of confinement as well. Some are limited physically, some have major health issues, some are housebound, some have mobility issues, some are limited by age. I have a lot of limitations as well. I’ve had physical issues my whole life and a few years ago I found out why… I have a congenital heart condition. And as I age, it seems to get worse. But I choose to let God use my limitations as His platform to speak truth.
Here’s the thing… it’s hard to be confined in the world of technology we live in today. Social media is a hub for all things fake, self-gratification, and facades. Oh, look at me. Look what I’m doing. You can live the BEST life if you just do what I’m doing. As we scroll through Facebook or Instagram, it’s easy to feel frustrated or to be overcome with discontentment, therefore, our confinement becomes a hardship. Let me encourage you today to stop scrolling and ask God to use your confinement to bless someone, to speak truth into someone, to train someone in the Word of God. Ask God to use your confinement, your limitations, as His platform to share the Good News with others. Let your confinement be a blessing rather than a misfortune.