We cannot help but be inspired when we hear of the heroic deeds of others. We feel ourselves swell with pride as we imagine ourselves taking the same action in such a situation. The problem is day-to-day life is actually rather boring and mundane. We wonder when “the moment” may come when we can prove to ourselves and to others that we can be heroes, too.
In the meantime, we wait for “the moment” to show our quality, fantasizing about scenarios where we will reveal our heroic selves. Here are a few possible scenarios.
“The Gunslinger” Scenario
He is always carrying a sidearm. Everywhere. Why? Because he has been waiting for and expecting “the moment” to happen at any moment, hopefully in public. An active shooter. A robber. The exact means does not matter as long as he is able to finally use his weapon to put the bad guy down. He does not consider the possibility that he may actually make such a situation worse. Any why should he? He has gone over the scenario in his mind many times and it will go perfectly.
“The Prepper” Scenario
I met a man in the military once that had a job that would not technically start until the nuclear apocalypse had started. Not until after nuclear weapons were in the air would his job begin, which would consist of keeping the government running in a post-nuclear holocaust world. Problem was, it had not happened yet. He had been training and prepping for years for this nightmare event. When I asked him how he felt about his job, his reply was “Sometimes I feel it would be nice to see the fruit of my labor.” He felt his work went unnoticed. I explained to him that his state of readiness is a deterrent for the enemy, which hopefully will prevent a nuclear holocaust from happening. He did not seem convinced. He was still looking forward to “the moment.”
“Your Crisis is my Crisis” Scenario
You would think that it was his own wife or child that was in jeopardy. He has spread the news of the tragedy far and wide under the guise of caring for the victim. He talks an awful lot about how devastated he is. One would think that the event had actually happened to him. “The moment” has come, he believes, but all he has really done is hijack the attention of someone else’s “moment.”
“I’m Offended for You” Scenario
He has played the scenario out over and over in his head. He has his pet peeve, and boy, when someone in public offends another, he is going to make his pet peeve known. When “the moment” comes one would think that he personally had been offended, but he really is just offended for the victim. He makes a big scene about it publicly and those witnessing the event walk away confused as to who the real victim was.
A common theme in the above scenarios is that not only are they looking for “the moment,” they also seek recognition in it. They also fabricate the moment. “The real moment” is a real trial, however. The heroes in all the stories worth emulating do not want or seek out “the moment,” but rather endure and overcome the trial because they must. When the moment really comes for us, it will come unlooked for. No, far from looking for it, we will want nothing to do with it. Consider Frodo and Sam in The Lord of the Rings, for example.
As great of a story The Lord of the Rings is, we do not need to look to fiction for real examples of heroes. Look at the greatest hero of all time; Jesus Christ. Even our Lord in “the real moment” said, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” Should our real moment ever come, despite how much we will want to run, may we stand our ground.
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