None Like Him
I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon…I have no one else like him…Philippians 2:19-20 (ESV)
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It was one of those perfect Asian evenings, perfumed by the woodsy smell of olive blossoms. Twilight had just yielded to the onset of darkness, and shipyard torches were lighted. The couple’s two boys were running off some of their energy before they would be required to sit quietly and listen to adults discuss scripture. My first hint of trouble came when Paul suddenly dropped to the ground with a soft oomph. I reached for him, wondering what had happened, when something crashed hard across my outstretched arm. I sensed the bone crack before I felt it. When the pain hit, I lost my breath and my footing. Aristarchus shouted as I, too, fell. My ankle twisted beneath my weight, and a heavy foot stomped it. More pain left me gasping. When I tried to move, another foot bashed my chest and held me down. A rough voice came from a mouth close to my ear. “We warned you. You didn’t listen.” “Help!” I screamed, but something heavy hammered my ear and temple. Before the world receded, I glimpsed Paul on the ground and shadows of others grappling nearby. One man strong-armed the struggling, screaming woman while his other hand snatched at two wailing children. One of the boys broke away and disappeared into the spreading darkness that overtook me. When I partially regained my senses, I lay immobile in the dust of the road. Each breath brought jagged edges of lightning pain coursing through my limbs and chest. As I inched my head off the ground, my heartbeat echoed a jarring throb inside my skull. I squeezed my eyelids together, and I pushed against it, and suddenly I was floating above my body. An intense light cast the whole scene into bright visibility, as if I were directing a stage scene. Muffled sounds of grunting and cursing accompanied the vision, and dust tickled my nose.
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About the Book
A shy, uncertain, mixed-race youth from Lystra watches in awe as an itinerant preacher heals a man lame from birth. A short time later, the healer, Paul, a brilliant man with a fiery spirit, and his coworker are almost killed by a rioting crowd. Thus begins the relationship between the two, which spans several decades as they travel endless miles preaching a stunning message that upends the Roman Empire and splits the calendar of time into two parts.
Timothy records the highs and lows of their ministry as they walk thousands of miles across the mountains and deserts of Asia Minor, Macedonia, Greece and eventually to Rome, preaching the gospel and founding new churches. As he matures under Paul’s guidance, Timothy gains confidence, learns to defend his youth against older believers and overcomes his deep fear of speaking before crowds. He continues to struggle, however, with frequent battles of self-doubt, especially when confronted with the turmoil they face. The early Christians endure physical and emotional abuse from natural disasters and human betrayal, including prejudice, hate, riots, beatings, injuries, imprisonment and loss of loved ones. They are often deprived of basic needs such as food, water and sleep.
Paul’s execution in Rome plunges Timothy into a grief so intense he almost loses not only his faith but also his will to live. Only when he realizes how close he came to making Paul his idol rather than his beloved teacher is his faith restored.
About the Author
Martha is a retired mental health counselor with an M.S. degree in Counseling Psychology and an M.A. in Teaching. Her undergraduate studies include a major in Bible. She loves history and enjoys reading and doing research for her writing. Other hobbies include travel, photography, painting, flower arranging, and sculpting with clay.
She is a professional freelance writer associated with several websites, a contributor to several devotional magazines, and a participant in an anthology of essays on spirituality in Christian Meat for Christian Muscles, published in 2011 by Sandtorock’s Books. So far, she has written three historical fiction novels, including None Like Him.
She currently resides with her daughter in southeastern Colorado, where she gets much of her inspiration from the nearby mountains.