My eyes grew big as I saw the colorful heroes depicted on the covers of the comic books stacked neatly in the spiral display at the pharmacy. As a first-grader, I had just started reading. My grandmother bought me my first comic book. I could not wait to get home and work my way through the pages. Mild-mannered Clark Kent, working at the Daily Planet Newspaper alongside his crush Lois Lane summons his super-hero alter ego and becomes the Man of Steel, Superman – “Faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.” I grabbed a red towel from our linen closet, tucked the corners into the back of my shirt and ran through the house, “Up, up, and away!”
Superman first appeared on the scenes in June of 1938, when Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster introduced us to the caped icon from the planet Krypton in Action Comics #1. It was a dark day in American history. War was on the horizon. America needed hope – a hero, one who would stand for “truth, justice, and the American way.”
The next few decades would give rise to more human superheroes, like Batman, Spiderman, and the Hulk. But Superman still serves as the prototype. This summer, Superman turned 80-years-old. You would think the famous octogenarian would have slowed down a little bit. But, with the continued release of memorabilia, movies, and other media, it is apparent we are still looking for a hero.
I have now passed the half-century mark and my heroes have taken a different form. I love to read, so I enjoy learning about great historical heroes. Last Sunday, I had the privilege of preaching in Maryland in a church that supports one of our EMU missionary families. I was only 45 minutes from Gettysburg, so I drove up on Monday and explored the hallowed ground of the site of the bloodiest battle fought by Americans. I had meetings the next couple of days in Washington DC, a city that celebrates its historical heroes with memorials and monuments. While in DC, I visited the newly opened Museum of the Bible. In addition to learning about the history of the Scriptures, I was challenged by the many heroes that sacrificed everything to give us access to God’s truth. While traveling between meetings I often afford myself the opportunity of listening to biographies, many of which are of missionary heroes like William Carey, Hudson Taylor, David Livingstone, Amy Carmichael, etc.
As I returned home last evening, my mind reflected on the idea of heroes. Who are my heroes today? My heroes are those men and women who faithfully serve God in an effort to bring glory to Him by using God’s gracious gifts in their lives to obediently fulfill the Great Commission. We have fifty-two of those families serving with EMU International. Each one is using their specific spiritual gifts to evangelize sinners and equip saints. I don’t think any of them actually fly or wear a cape, but every one of them is a hero to me.
In a very real sense, those of you who partner with us, YOU are also a hero. Without your faithful prayers and continued financial partnership, none of our missionaries could do what they do. Because of YOU, churches are being established, souls are being reached, Christians are being discipled, the Bible is being translated, and truth is being proclaimed. All of this really is for the true hero, our Lord Jesus Christ who makes all of this possible.