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!

Step Up Dad's

I have just found and read a book over the last few days that I really want to STRONGLY recommend for you dad's out there...particularly if you have a daughter. The book is called Interviewing Your Daughter's Date by Dennis Rainey. It is a really short book (65 pages plus an Appendix)that will probably take you less then 2 hours to read but it is more than worth your time. It is basically a call for Dad's to step up and take seriously our God given responsibility to protect our daughter's heart and purity, as well as invest in the lives of young men who take an interest in them.

Soul Surfer

So I went and saw this movie and I have to give 2 thumbs up. It will probably not win any awards for the acting or anything, though it was not bad at all. But in a time that is severely lacking on good positive media...this movie is a standout. This movie is based on a true story of the life of Bethany Hamilton, a teenage girl who had a dream of becoming a prfessional surfer. As that dream was just beginning to come to fruition she was tragically attacked by a shark while fishing that took off a piece of her surf board along with her entire left arm. This movie depicts the struggles and the come back that she went through.

There are not many movies today that have absolutely zero curse words that are not cartoons, but this one has none. The story line places a significant emphasis on Bethany's faith in God. There are numerous scenes in church and youth group settings, scripture quotes (Jeremiah 29:11 and Philippians 4:13) and even a mission trip scene. This was definetly not your typical Hollywood feature. It is also not your typical low budget movie. It is very well done with some beautiful scenes and some very intense scenes. I highly encourage you and your familiy to go and see this one...and if you hit a matinee it is only $5. Well worth the money!

WrestleMania

When I left the Annex Wednesday night I felt like I had been involved in WrestleMania. Actually, thats sort of how this whole series examining "The Sovereignty of God" has felt. I think we have truly been "wrestling with Scripture". Not that I feel like I have been beat up, but more that I have really had to take hold of this subject, and wrestle with it, and think on it, and meditate on it...and think on it, and meditate on it, and think....you get the picture. Unfortunately, I can't say I have been completely victorious in my grappling either. I certainly can't say that I now fully understand God's sovereignty. However I can say that I understand it better, and I don't use the word sovereignty as flippantly as before.

This past Wednesday was our final lesson in the series and probably the most challenging to think through, not just for me but for the students as well. In previous weeks we have discussed the fact that God is in control, He is all-knowing, and He is all-powerful. This week we looked at the idea that God is all-loving. I asked the students to really try to think about what that means...God is all-loving. I asked them to try as much as possible to set aside all of their previous thoughts, assumptions and biases on this topic and try to really come at it, as much as possible, from a blank viewpoint. I asked them what that means...God is all-loving. Does that mean that He loves all? Stop and think about that question. Does God love all? Does He love all animals...even mosquitos, rats or spiders? Does He love all plants...even briars, poison ivy and seaweed? What about Satan and the demons? Does God love them? What about all people? Does God love ALL people? If you are like me then you quickly respond with an emphatic "YES, of course He loves all people". But is that true? And more importantly, why do I think it is true? Did He love the criminal on the cross next to Him that mocked and rebuked Him? We know He loved the one and assured him of a place in heaven, but did He actually love the other man? What about the coming antichrist. Does/will God love him? He is, after all, the "anti" christ or the opposite/against christ. What about Romans 9:13 which quotes God as saying "Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated." (a reference to Malachi 1:2-3).

Two of the greatest components of God's demonstrated love to us is seen in His mercy and His grace. Does God give His grace and mercy to all people equally? Scripture seems to be full of examples where God did choose some and not others to receive His mercy and grace. He chose Israel over the other people groups of the day...and certaibly not because of any obvious merit on their part. He chose Jacob as the recepient of his favor and not Esau. In John 5:1-9 Jesus chose to heal one invalid man among many. He could have healed them all but He healed only one. Why? He raised Lazarus from the dead. Why didn't He raise all people? Romans 9:15 says that He will have mercy on who He chooses to have mercy.

I certainly would not say that God does not love all people, but I do believe we need to think about that issue. If we believe that He does love all people...is it because we just think He has to, in order to be a good God? That is a problem if we do think that way, because then we are the ones dictating to God how He must act. At that point we have taken His sovereignty away and placed it on ourselves. If God were to choose to love some and not others...He would be justified in that because He is sovereign. I encourage you parents to talk with your students about this idea of God's sovereignty...spend some time with them wrestling through this concept. Spend some time wrestling on your own with it. It is more than a worthwhile topic to wrestle with.