We are too often corrupted. Not even by things that are overtly corrupting. It comes from those things that are meant for in more youthful times. We are to seek maturity and not chase after our youth and those things that of our youthful time.

“²²So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.” – 2 Timothy 2:22 (ESV)

When young, we seek things of youth. We look for fun and enjoyment in the moment. And when the moment passes, we move on to the next moment. We are limited in responsibility and therefore, those moments get in the way less often than when we are in a more mature season of life. Don’t get me wrong, we should be seeking enjoyment and joy in our lives. I am not advocating for no fun or living in the moment. We should however be grounded in maturity and seeking more sustainable joy and enjoyment.

As we see in the verse above, Paul guides Timothy to those joys and enjoyment that are of a more mature way. “Righteousness, faith, love, and peace” are where we should be seeking that joy and enjoyment. These are the more mature attributes, and we will find stability and comfort in them. There is more depth to them and more thought that comes with them. They are found deep inside us and are guided from, yes you guessed it, the heart. It is from our heart, where the LORD dwells, that we find the more lasting and mature things in life.

As we grow, we not only grow in size and age, but we should be growing in maturity as well. We should be pursuing those things that come with maturity such as those listed by Paul to Timothy. We are to grow up find the LORD in our heart and allow Him to guides us forward through the Holy Spirit. We are to find our joy and enjoyment in seeking the LORD and all that He has to offer in our lives.

And for those who ask what about the fun of our youth, where does that fit. Well, it still fits and should be a part of our lives, only we are not to seek after them and if/when they taking over our focus, we are to run from them. The word Paul uses above is to “flee” or run away from those things that are not building us up in the LORD. We will find ourselves in moments of youthful fun, and we should enjoy our time in those moments, yet they should be just that in our lives, just moments. As we grow in maturity, those moments are no longer “passions” but just moments of enjoyment that we find along our path with the LORD.

Where are you spending your time? Are you seeking out continually the passions of your youth? What if you were to flee from those and sought out the maturity that comes from the LORD, righteousness, faith, love, and peace that He has in your heart where He abides?