1 Thessalonians 2. On my drive from home to my office at church, I frequently must wait in stopped traffic because there are ducks crossing the road. It’s stressful as a driver because non-locals do not realize why cars are stopped and often whip around to pass and nearly flatten the ducks in the road. Honestly, the ducks just need to relocate so they don’t have to cross two lanes of traffic every day to get to the pond. Now it’s spring and this week the mama duck has got fluffy yellow ducklings following her across the road – it is the cutest thing ever! She leads them from the front, and they waddle behind her in a disorganized row. Sometimes she has to run back and grab the one that got distracted and redirect him; sometimes she’s quacking animatedly at them all to hurry up and pay attention.

The Apostle Paul’s ministry among the Thessalonians reminds me of the mama duck. The Thessalonian church has responded so well to the gospel (see chapter 1) and is rapidly growing in their faith. We see Paul’s pastoral heart for them in this letter, how he labored and toiled to ensure their correct doctrine and spiritual growth. Paul uses parental metaphors to talk about his relationship with the believers, saying we were gentle among you, like a nursing mother taking care of her own children (1 Thes 2:7). His affection for the believers was strongly evident. For you know how, like a father with his own children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God… (1 Thes 2:11-12).

Like a good mama duck, or good parents, Paul loves this community with his whole heart. He shares not only the gospel of God with them, but his entire life as well. This is not hit-and-run evangelism; it is a fully present, fully engaged, transparent labor of love that is focused on helping young believers navigate life and grow into maturity. Paul encourages his ducklings to follow him and stay in line, offering clucks of motivation and words of correction as they make their way through dangerous traffic.

The call is for all of us – walk in a manner worthy of God. And there is also a call for us to be mentoring and parenting other believers – with gentleness and encouragement – as we all try to cross the dangerous sections of life without getting run over.

Are you walking in a worthy manner? Who are you encouraging in their walk? How might you share, not just the gospel, but the whole of your life with transparency?

I cannot believe I just compared the Apostle Paul to a duck.

What stood out to you in 1 Thessalonians 2?