Everyday Heroes - Sarah Lentz

Everyday Heroes

By Sarah Lentz

     There are many people every day who are heroes to someone because they bring blessings in the name of Jesus. We may never be able to measure their impact through historical reference, but we have all seen by one means or another, how one action can affect one circumstance or person, which in turn affects someone else, and the domino continues to exponential effect.

Heroes of Giving

     I have been blessed personally by heroes of God’s love. Several years ago I required major surgery. I was unemployed with no health insurance, praying for God’s provision. I scheduled the surgery, trusting God to provide what I needed. A few days later my pastor called and asked if I had scheduled it. I told him yes, and he said, “Good. We want to confirm that decision by helping you raise the money you need.”

     That next Sunday they took up a collection, and the church blessed me with $8000. Gratefully, I took that gift to the hospital, and was able to pay a sizable chunk of my bill. But that wasn’t all. A few days later, a woman came into my recovery room asking some questions in order to get me additional aid. Even though originally the hospital said they could not assist me financially because I was from out of state, it turned out that they wrote off the rest of their substantial bill. I thank God for making it possible through everyday heroes.

A Very Special Gift

     Several years later I had another surgery. This time, I was married, so I had the special love of my husband, and God had given him a good job with good health insurance. I was home recovering, and a package came in the mail. My husband’s aunt belongs to a church that does a special thing for the sick or hospitalized. They make prayer quilts with string or cord attached in many places, and as each person works on it, they pray over the person who is to receive it, and tie a not in the string. In my package was a prayer quilt, a card from all the many ladies who had prayed for me, and a card from my husband’s aunt and uncle. I must have cried ten times over that package I was so blessed by the love and faith that came with it. Those women became heroes to me—expressing God’s love in a very tangible way.

Your Turn to Be a Hero

     Every day you bless someone by a prompting of the Holy Spirit or a desire to give away the love of Jesus, you become a hero of the faith. A meal delivered when someone is sick or recovering from surgery can mean they get healthy nutrition rather than a box of crackers. Grocery shopping can be next to impossible for someone in pain. Even if it would have been wiser to stock up the pantry before surgery, letting go of the “you should haves” and “could haves” to offer love and help may go further in drawing someone to Jesus than anything else could.

     You can be someone’s hero by teaching them a skill, believing in them, encouraging them, babysitting for them, driving them somewhere, cleaning their house or their kitchen – really there are countless ways that will be meaningful, if you pay attention to what they say. Let the Lord prompt you, and don't be afraid to act on your ideas. Even if someone doesn't react well at first, in their hearts they may have been touched, and for some, it takes a while to let their shell dissolve for you to see the impact you've made.

      Be courageous and stand firm in love. It's exciting to be a hero!