St. Timothy is, perhaps, the individual most closely associated with St. Paul. The result of a "mixed-marriage" (his mother was Jewish and his father was Greek), Timothy's mother and grandmother were early converts to Christianity and, as a result, Timothy grew up in the Christian faith and became a respected member of the Church in Anatolia (modern-day Turkey). When Paul arrived to minister to the community there, Timothy became one of his disciples and began accompanying Paul on his journeys. Seen as a kind of spiritual son to Paul, Timothy grew in his faith and leadership role and eventually served as an emissary for Paul, delivering epistles and messages to Corinth, Philippi and Thessalonica. As time went on and Timothy grew in ability, Paul left him to govern the church in Ephesus. It is there that tradition states he was stoned to death after trying to stop a procession honoring the Roman goddess Diana.
Timothy and Titus serve as models of discipleship and, together, demonstrate that youth does not prevent one from preaching the Gospel. In his First Letter to Timothy, St. Paul exhorts him to "let no one have contempt for your youth, but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity." Through their example, we can all learn the importance of sharing our faith with those we meet and following God's path for us.