I Need A Hero

Most of you parents probably remember that 80' song by Bonnie Tyler...I need a Hero. Though that song was quite popular in the 80's I think if it was written today it would be an even bigger hit. I think that's what so many of the teens in our culture today are screaming out..."I Need A Hero!". I think they are tired of the heroes of the last couple of decades, people from sports, politics, or Hollywood who have all sorts of fortune and fame. Those people are not so much cutting it for this generation. I think they are wanting to find people who are truly making a difference in their world. That is what they want to see in a hero. The problem is, I think they are all too often struggling to find those people.
That is the heart behind our new series called "Missions Heroes". I want to take a few weeks and share with the students about some people that are probably not on a list of Top 10 Heroes, but absolutely have lived heroic lives, lives of sacrifice and/or significance that were totally surrendered to following God no matter what He called them to. I believe that these often forgotten people are more than worthy of this next generation looking up to and modeling their lives after. Each week I want to share about the lives of couple of these potential heroes. Last night I shared about Eric Liddell and Bethany Hamilton.
Eric Liddell (pronounced like 'little') was a hero of the 1924 Olympics in Paris. He became the first Scotsman to ever win a Gold medal...but not before creating a bit of controversy. He had qualified for the Olympics but just before the event he refused to run in 3 events because of the fact that they were scheduled to be held on Sunday and that went against his Christian convictions. WOW...what a bold stance to take. This did not make his British compatriots very happy as he was the favorite to win in at least the 100 meter dash and maybe more. In a matter of days he had gone from being a national hero with many expectations, to a coward and traitor in the eyes of so many. He ended up running in the 400 meter dash as it was not held on Sunday, but he was not expected to do very well. He ended up winning the gold and setting a new world record which brought him back to hero status again among hi people. 18 months after the 1924 Olympics, with people already talking about what he could do in the 1928 Olympics, Eric made the decision to give up athletics and follow where God was leading, which was into missionary service in China, a country that was in extreme turmoil with communist fighting desperately for power. That level of conviction to walk away from such gifts and opportunities in order to follow God's calling...that is the stuff of heroes! Eric's died in 1945 in a camp in which the Japanese had forced him to live. Check out the movie Chariots of Fire, as it is the story of Eric Liddell.
Bethany Hamilton may be a little more familiar name right now as she is the story upon which the current movie, Soul Surfer, is based. (Go see this movie...not only is it a really good movie, but we also need to support this kind of quality, Christian friendly media) Bethany hamilton at the age of 13 was well on her way to a very successful professional surfing career. She had already been signed to a sponsorship deal with one the leading surf company's. One day while out surfing for fun she had part of her board and her entire left arm bitten off in an instant by a 14 foot tiger shark. For most people this would have been a devastating tragedy. Bethany allowed God to use this to give her an incredible platform from which to turn glory back to Him. She did not wallow in self pity, but rather seized this opportunity to glorify God. I don't want to ruin the movie for you, but she came back and acheived that professional surfing career and has used the opportunity to share and point people all over the world to Jesus Christ. Again, the stuff of heroes!