I’ve used this quote by Arthur Ashe before, but it bears repeating. Ashe said, “True heroism is remarkably sober, very undramatic. It is not the urge to surpass all others at whatever cost, but the urge to serve at whatever cost.”
This past weekend, my brother, Mark, provided an example of heroic servanthood that Ashe is describing. The sink at my house wasn’t draining properly. I’m next to useless when it comes to such projects. My dad is the handyman, so he and I were toying with it, but there came a point where Dad had realized that even he was not going to be able to fix it. Enter my brother, Mark.
On Friday night, Mark was able to pinpoint the problem: there was two decades worth of buildup from the kitchen sink. It was built up in an area that was not slanted in the proper direction, so the drainage had been going uphill, so to speak, for all those years. Because of this, all of the food was getting clogged at that spot. The next day, Saturday, with my brother’s expertise and know-how, the problem was finally resolved.
I am so grateful to my brother for sacrificing his comfort, his time, and his energy to help unclog this problem drainpipe. He certainly didn’t have to do so, but he heroically chose to give of himself. It’s remarkable to me to think about the fact that my brother didn’t take any money for this job, a job that took something like 15 hours to complete. It was Memorial Day weekend; had my brother been busy, I don’t even want to think about how much money a plumber would have charged!
This example I’ve shared is heroism. No, this isn’t giving your life on the battlefield, but this is still heroism, in my book. This is heroism that is "remarkably sober [and] very undramatic" to quote Ashe again. Incidentally, this is not an isolated event. Day in and day out, my brother selflessly serves, protects, and provides for his wife and family.
Kevin
Monday, May 26, 2014
"Everybody loves a hero"
Even though the Spider-Man franchise has been rebooted with Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and company, I must admit that the previous Spider-Man series with Tobey Maguire as Spider-Man and Sam Raimi as director will always be the Spider-Man franchise that is my favorite.
There’s a marvelous scene from the movie Spider-Man 2 that recently came to my mind. I was recalling a touching moment between Aunt May and Peter as she eloquently speaks to Peter about the virtue of heroism. This is a topic that everyone should be thinking about on this special day that we honor the memory of our fallen heroes.
Let me give you the context of the scene of the film. Peter Parker is fed up with being Spider-Man. He sees it as a thankless chore. He announces: “I’m Spider-Man no more” and throws his Spider-Man suit into a dumpster. It's not clearly stated how much time passes, but crime steadily begins to go up in New York in Spider-Man's absence. Peter feels torn between his responsibility and his desire to live a normal life.
Peter decides to go visit to his Aunt May. He discovers that May is moving and that Henry, a young boy from across the street, is helping her. In the course of their conversation, Aunt May says that Henry misses Spider-Man; and that he eventually wants to be Spider-Man himself. Peter asks her why. Here are her words in reply:
“He knows a hero when he sees one. [There are] too few characters out there flying around like that saving old girls like me. Lord knows kids like Henry need a hero. Courageous, self-sacrificing people, setting examples for all of us. Everybody loves a hero. People line up for them, cheer them, scream their name, and years later they’ll tell how they stood in the rain for hours just to get a glimpse of the one who taught them to “hold on” a second longer. I believe there’s a hero in all of us; that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride.”
Aunt May’s words inspire Peter to resume his role as Spider-Man, but her words inspire us as well. Today I want to remember the brave men and women who are heroes in every sense of the word. They are “courageous, self-sacrificing people”; they are “examples for all of us.”
Kevin
There’s a marvelous scene from the movie Spider-Man 2 that recently came to my mind. I was recalling a touching moment between Aunt May and Peter as she eloquently speaks to Peter about the virtue of heroism. This is a topic that everyone should be thinking about on this special day that we honor the memory of our fallen heroes.
Let me give you the context of the scene of the film. Peter Parker is fed up with being Spider-Man. He sees it as a thankless chore. He announces: “I’m Spider-Man no more” and throws his Spider-Man suit into a dumpster. It's not clearly stated how much time passes, but crime steadily begins to go up in New York in Spider-Man's absence. Peter feels torn between his responsibility and his desire to live a normal life.
Peter decides to go visit to his Aunt May. He discovers that May is moving and that Henry, a young boy from across the street, is helping her. In the course of their conversation, Aunt May says that Henry misses Spider-Man; and that he eventually wants to be Spider-Man himself. Peter asks her why. Here are her words in reply:
“He knows a hero when he sees one. [There are] too few characters out there flying around like that saving old girls like me. Lord knows kids like Henry need a hero. Courageous, self-sacrificing people, setting examples for all of us. Everybody loves a hero. People line up for them, cheer them, scream their name, and years later they’ll tell how they stood in the rain for hours just to get a glimpse of the one who taught them to “hold on” a second longer. I believe there’s a hero in all of us; that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride.”
Aunt May’s words inspire Peter to resume his role as Spider-Man, but her words inspire us as well. Today I want to remember the brave men and women who are heroes in every sense of the word. They are “courageous, self-sacrificing people”; they are “examples for all of us.”
Kevin
Thursday, May 22, 2014
A special day (part 2)
Last time, I mentioned how it has been a busy month of May for me so far. The first big event in May was my CCU graduation. Today I want to talk about the next big event (or special day as I’ve entitled it) that happened in May.
This past Saturday, the 17th, I had the tremendous privilege of attending a Christian writer’s conference. I wasn’t able to attend all the festivities of this writer’s conference, as it started on Wednesday the 14th, but being present for just Saturday was such an incredible gift.
Candidly, I’m having some trouble conveying just how incredible this writer’s conference was to me. How can I capture the magnitude of this event in a few short paragraphs? It seems almost impossible to do. But, in a nutshell, I felt fortified. I felt empowered, strengthened, and uplifted by God. It felt like a divine appointment as well as an energizing retreat.
The main message I received is a reminder that God has given me a gift for writing. I am to use that gift for Him. This is a challenge that I willingly committed to afresh. I want God to use me as a tool to show others how great and glorious He is.
Kevin
This past Saturday, the 17th, I had the tremendous privilege of attending a Christian writer’s conference. I wasn’t able to attend all the festivities of this writer’s conference, as it started on Wednesday the 14th, but being present for just Saturday was such an incredible gift.
Candidly, I’m having some trouble conveying just how incredible this writer’s conference was to me. How can I capture the magnitude of this event in a few short paragraphs? It seems almost impossible to do. But, in a nutshell, I felt fortified. I felt empowered, strengthened, and uplifted by God. It felt like a divine appointment as well as an energizing retreat.
The main message I received is a reminder that God has given me a gift for writing. I am to use that gift for Him. This is a challenge that I willingly committed to afresh. I want God to use me as a tool to show others how great and glorious He is.
Kevin
Sunday, May 18, 2014
A special day (part 1)
After a month away from blogging, I’m finally back. It feels good to contemplate sharing my thoughts with you again. In short, I have been busy. It’s particularly been a busy month of May so far.
One of the events that occurred is my CCU graduation! If you are a regular viewer of my blog, you know that I finished all my classes back in October, but the official graduation ceremony was this month. What a special day! It was fun to go and celebrate the closing of that season of my life.
The most memorable aspect of the event was probably when I walked across that stage. I must admit I was a little nervous. For one thing, I was concerned that they were going to butcher my last name. My last name is Bauer. Believe it or not, it has been mispronounced numerous times in my life (although the influence of the character Jack Bauer from 24 has helped in that regard. In fact, I’m often jokingly asked if I’m related to him). Thankfully, my name was pronounced correctly. And, I’m happy to report that the whole event went quite well.
Although if I’d had the presence of mind, I would have pointed up like Christian athletes do as I was walking across the stage. I say this because I attribute all the glory, honor, and praise for my educational achievement to God. In fact, on the back of the graduation announcements that I sent out, I cited a verse from Psalm 115. This verse is the heartbeat of my entire life. It reads, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1).
Moreover, as I look back on the closing of this chapter of my life, I am grateful to God that He orchestrated it that I could go to a God-honoring college. It was such a blessing to go to a university that boldly taught from a Biblical worldview and unashamedly prayed in Jesus’ name. I’m proud to be a graduate from such a great school.
Kevin
One of the events that occurred is my CCU graduation! If you are a regular viewer of my blog, you know that I finished all my classes back in October, but the official graduation ceremony was this month. What a special day! It was fun to go and celebrate the closing of that season of my life.
The most memorable aspect of the event was probably when I walked across that stage. I must admit I was a little nervous. For one thing, I was concerned that they were going to butcher my last name. My last name is Bauer. Believe it or not, it has been mispronounced numerous times in my life (although the influence of the character Jack Bauer from 24 has helped in that regard. In fact, I’m often jokingly asked if I’m related to him). Thankfully, my name was pronounced correctly. And, I’m happy to report that the whole event went quite well.
Although if I’d had the presence of mind, I would have pointed up like Christian athletes do as I was walking across the stage. I say this because I attribute all the glory, honor, and praise for my educational achievement to God. In fact, on the back of the graduation announcements that I sent out, I cited a verse from Psalm 115. This verse is the heartbeat of my entire life. It reads, “Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to Your Name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness” (Psalm 115:1).
Moreover, as I look back on the closing of this chapter of my life, I am grateful to God that He orchestrated it that I could go to a God-honoring college. It was such a blessing to go to a university that boldly taught from a Biblical worldview and unashamedly prayed in Jesus’ name. I’m proud to be a graduate from such a great school.
Kevin
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