2 Timothy 1:7, NKJ  For God has not given us a spirit of fear….

The Living Bible says, “For the Holy Spirit, God’s gift, does not want you to be afraid.”  The Message Bible adds that “God doesn’t want us to be shy with his gifts.”

I want to share some key concepts from my soon-to-be-released new book, I Am Not Afraid of My Future, the first in The Timothy Collection for young people.

Genesis 1:1,31, NIV  In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…God saw all that he had made, and it was very good….

In the first chapter of the Bible, God created everything by His Word, and said that everything was “good.”  Finally, on the sixth day, He made mankind, distinctly different, male and female, and placed them in the Garden of Eden, the Kingdom culture which He had made.  Everything that Adam and Eve needed was in that Garden.  God positioned them in the midst of Paradise, a finished work.  They did not lack for anything.  It was a done deal.  They were but the stewards of what the Lord had done for them.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-2, KJV  To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:  A time to be born….

In like manner, every chapter of this new writing highlights one of fourteen blessings that the Lord prepared and provided for you before you were born.  As with the first couple, all these things were already in place when you arrived on this planet, the day that you were born.  You do not have to be afraid of your future!

Romans 11:36, NIV  For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things.  To Him be the glory forever!  Amen.

Each of these fourteen blessings finds its fullest expression in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.  He was here waiting for your arrival, to take you by the hand.

At the end of each chapter are important questions which can be used as talking points for parents or with other young people.  The material in this book could also be:

1.      Used as a devotional reading for young people.

2.      Used for family devotions.

3.      Used for Sunday School curricula.

4.      Used in youth retreats and youth camps.

The table is set, and it is full.  As Jesus told the disciples after His resurrection on that beach that morning, all you have to do is “come and dine” (Jn. 21:12).