Monday, February 25 Have regard for those who are. . . presiding over you in the Lord.—1 Thess. 5:12. Imagine yourself as a member of the first-century Thessalonian congregation, one of the earliest to be established in Europe. The apostle Paul had spent considerable time building up the brothers there. He may have appointed older men to take the lead,as was the case in other congregations.(Acts 14:23) But after the congregation was formed,the Jews organized a mob to rid the city of Paul and Silas.The Christians who remained might have felt deserted, perhaps even fearful. Understandably, after leaving Thessalonica, Paul was concerned about the fledgling congregation. He tried to return, but “Satan cut across†his path. So he sent Timothy to encourage the congregation.(1 Thess. 2:18; 3:2) When Timothy brought back a good report, Paul was moved to write the Thessalonians a letter. Among other things, Paul encouraged them to ‘have regard for those who were presiding over them.’ w11 6/154:1, 2