Nevertheless, God, that comforteth those that are cast down, comforted us by the coming of Titus. 2 Corinthians 7:6
We were working in the summer heat, painting the windows of a large old school in Fredericton. We had to work in awkward positions, and we were all tired, aching, and in a bad temper. We had run out of water, the paint was particularly strong-smelling, and everybody wanted to quit. But we struggled on for another hour or two, making progress that was far too slow. Then, as we were all shaking our heads in discouragement, in came Dave with a big cooler full of icy lemonade, and a half dozen sandwiches. Dave had a friendly, fun-loving personality, and his presence brightened up the workplace immediately. We were delighted to see him, especially since he had brought our pay cheques from the boss. He was probably almost as welcome as Titus was to Paul in today’s text. Are you a Titus?
There are some Christians who are a great comfort whenever they show up. They cheer us up and give us a boost. They remind us of the goodness of God in providing such cheerful and helpful people. And really, there’s no reason why we can’t all be like Titus. We can remind each other of the coming of the Lord. What could be more uplifting than that? We can be sympathetic and supportive when others are going through troubles of any kind. We can offer to help with chores. We can offer a listening ear when a brother or sister needs to unload. We can be a friend, be a helper, be an encourager, be a listener, be a guide, be there. Our presence often means far more to others than we realize, as long as our attitude is to be Christ-like and a comfort.
We don’t really know what Titus looked like. When you read today’s text, and you get a mental picture of Titus arriving to greet Paul, can you see his face as that of somebody who has been a comfort to you? Is there someone who can picture you as their Titus today? -Jim MacIntosh