Tomioka: Humility and Loyalty

Got this recommendation from one of our youth to talk about Giyu Tomioka (Demon Slayer character) and to be honest I had to do a bit of research on this guy. In short, he is a background character who pushes the main character (Tanjiro) to be a demon slayer.  Tomioka went through a lot of loss (death of sister and friend) and is driven with loyalty to support those around him even if it goes against the Slayer Corp. However, this young man thinks nothing of himself, despite being one of the high ranking slayers (hashiras), and is always looking to push either himself or others to grow.

Tomioka reminds me of a mix of Gideon and Samuel.  Gideon because he was from a small tribe of Israel and was called to be a warrior for God, even though he thought of himself as nothing special, let alone a soldier. The part that reminds me of Samuel is the resolve to loyalty for what really matters.  Samuel was raised by Eli who was not the best at leading his own kids or a being a spiritual leader for Israel, but in the midst of it Samuel is one of the most firm prophets in following God's leading.  In following God's leading he was willing to even call out King Saul for letting the power of the crown get to his head. The delicate balance for us is the humility of realizing we are not all that amazing on our own, but we do have purpose. And loyalty to the one we serve as well as our acts of service to those around us is tantamount to our character.  That's the lesson of Tomioka.

Tomioka was willing to put himself on the line for others and lift them up above himself (admittedly to a fault), how will you lift others and loyally serve those around you like he did?

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