Heroes or Zeros

I have often thought it would be good to wake up each morning as ask this question: "Today, am I going to be a hero, or a zero?" In other words, "Today, am I going to matter, am I going to make a difference? Or am I just going to go through the paces, check the box so to speak?".  Truthfully, most of us think we are neither - most days we act somewhere in between a hero and a zero. To that, I say is faulty thinking. Many of us are heroes in ways we never think of.

For example, I worked with a man at the YMCA many years ago. A kind and gentle man, he was very well liked by YMCA members and staff alike. One day I asked him why it seemed like he always liked his job so much. His response was one I will never forget as it was very good counsel - "Every day I come to work I know I am going to make a difference in someones life. Once in a while, a huge difference, more often a medium difference, and always at least a small difference". Then it dawned on me. Being a hero does not always have to be saving someone from a burning building - it can be making someones life better in even the smallest of ways.

Consider that just with our speech, our words, we can make or break someones day. We can either edify or debase just by what we say and how we say it. The Bible in James Chapter 3 talks about the dangers of saying the wrong thing:

³ When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. ⁴ Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. ⁵ Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.

 ⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, ⁸ but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

In addition, the Bible also talks  in the most crystal clear language about how words can be used for good in Ephesians Chapter 4:

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. ³⁰ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. ³¹ Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. ³² Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. 5 ¹ Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children ² and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Again, it is just as easy to edify as to debase, however the temptation to debase is far greater. The act of omission is considered to be as vile as the act of commission when it involves a truculent or evil act. However, the act of omission is noble when a hurtful word or unkind act is intentionally NOT done. Small things lead to small differences; many small differences done by many people can effect change in our world.

One day I was meeting with my former pastor to discuss some of the struggles I was having in my new job at a church of another denomination. The senior pastor at this other church was baiting me constantly about the church I belonged to. I asked my pastor for some good words, some good arguments to refute his logic with. The counsel I received was this - "Every day you walk into that church, take two cups of grace rather than one, and if two are not enough, take a third, a fourth". In other words, even though what this other pastor was doing was wrong and deserved to be corrected, I needed to show more grace than I received. What would happen in our world if every day all of us showed more grace than we received? Heroes once again, in small measures, but heroes none the less.

One of the expressions which as been used for some time now is to perform a "random act of kindness". To be kind is to once again use commission and omission. To do something, no matter how small to make someones life (or day) better, is to commit (commission) an act of kindness. To NOT do something that would hurt or anger is to omit (omission) an act of unkindness. A few years ago, we were waiting in a long line to get gas. When one of the pumps finally opened up, a truck can out of nowhere and pulled right in front of me and took the pump I was waiting for. He was in the wrong; I was in the right. That being said, I let it go. Was I scared or intimidated by the young man in the truck? No, but I decided to show grace, decided this was going to be an act of omission by letting it pass.

A wonderful example of kindness is a woman who lived in the same assisted living complex that my Mother lived in. This woman greeted and treated everyone the same way. She was elderly and I am sure had her share of aches and pains. However, her mood was always the same to those she knew or just met. Without being overbearing, she was always there to help, chat or give a hug and a kind word. Every day, day in and day out, there she was. Sharing herself, sharing the love. A hero. Making a difference every day - as with my friend from the YMCA, some small, some not so small and some huge.

I would love to finish this up by saying this is the way I live my life - but it is not. There are many days when I am getting ready for bed that I look back on the day and see nothing but missed opportunities. I believe that every opportunity that presents itself to us is unique and a gift. Many times this gift goes unnoticed or unopened.

Our society, our country, our world needs heroes. We have had too many years of people missing opportunities, opportunities which will never be repeated. As the longest journey starts with the first step, the change our world needs right now also starts with the first kind word or action. In the movie Pearl Harbor, the hero wanted to go over to Europe to help the British fight the Nazi menace. When his commanding officer asked him why he was so anxious to die, the hero responded "I don't want to die sir, I just want to matter". Heroes, no matter the size, matter. Zeroes do not.