July 29, 2022
Faithful
Suzanne Eller
Today’s Truth
Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing (Ephesians 6:21 NIV).
Friend to Friend
Many had left the morning church service, but I remained on the pew. Tears fell as I talked to God.
Father, what is my calling?
It felt like others had this figured out. I wanted to know what God wanted me to do, and yet I had no idea what that looked like. That’s when I noticed a boot swinging down the row from me.
A young teen and his little sister sat quietly. He had long, dark blonde hair that hung over his eyes. She chewed her gum with gusto. I got to know them a few months earlier when they asked for a ride home after church. That soon became a regular occurrence. I’d stop at a drive through for burgers on the way, adding in one for mom.
Our car rides were short, but their innocent conversations revealed that things were hard. Dad was in jail. Mom had to work two jobs, doing what she could to keep her little family together.
That day, I scooted closer to them on the pew.
“Do you need a ride home?” I asked.
They nodded.
“Are you hungry?”
Smiles all around.
When I pulled in front of their home, their mom waited in the doorway; fatigue marked every inch of her being. Her son raced out of the car. His sister hugged me, then grabbed the sack with her mom’s burger and rushed to the door. As I backed out of the driveway, the answer to my prayer came in a rush. It felt like a billboard in my soul.
Suzie, those two children are your calling – for today.
In Ephesians 6, Paul ends a letter with what seems like a random message, but it tells us so much about a man named Tychicus.
“Tychicus, the dear brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know how I am and what I am doing” Ephesians 6:21 (NIV).
Tychicus is mentioned only a handful of times in scripture. He’s never front and center. Instead, Paul describes Tychicus as “faithful.” He’s the guy who shows up. While he might not be a headliner, he’s vital to Paul and God’s work.
I had been asking God for a special assignment. I wanted details. I longed to be able to map it all out. Yet my calling was to simply be faithful. That day’s mission was a ride home for two children and to run through a drive through for burgers and fries. The next day it would look different.
I had been fitful over my calling, while my true invitation was to be faithful.
Years later I received a Facebook message.
It was the teen with the dark blonde hair, except now he was a husband and young father. His family moved when his dad was released from jail years before. He told me that life wasn’t easy, but it was less hard than it had been. His sister was also doing well. She was studying to be a nurse.
“I never forgot you,” he said.
As I read that message, tears came.
It didn’t look like much – a ride home for two children, a sack of burgers here and there. Yet it was important to God because that mama and her two children were important to Him. He said that he and his little sister felt safe and that many times the burgers were the only lunch his mama enjoyed.
Maybe you’ve been wrestling with the question I had so many years ago.
God, what is my calling?
Instead of asking that question, what if we put a new one in its place.
Lord, how can I be faithful today?
Daily faithfulness, listening for the voice of God, and saying yes to it – that’s where we find our calling. It might be big or small. It might be seen or unseen. Yet God uses it to make a difference as we simply show up.
Let’s Pray
Jesus, how can I be faithful today? Show me my part to play today in Your plan, big or small, In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Now It’s Your Turn
What is one way you can show up for another today?
Ask God and then follow through. We have no idea of how God can use such a small thing to make such a beautiful difference.
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© 2022 by Suzanne Eller. All rights reserved.
