My Heroes, Part 1

I was out with friends not long ago and someone mentioned that a particular national figure was a hero of his. It got me thinking of who my heroes are -- both the ones long passed and the ones still living. Who are the people I most admire, who've taught me the most and who provide an example I long to follow? So I'm periodically going to talk about a few of the women and men who inspire me -- public figures, historical figures, and people you'll likely never meet.

I trust that I won't put my salvation in jeopardy or sully my testimony by not beginning with "Jesus." May we assume that the One I worship and to whom I owe my very soul transcends "hero"? Great.

One of my heroes is my dear friend, Lupita Rocha Quintana, a Bible teacher and missionary living in Spain. Never married, born to a very poor family, she served for 15 years as director of a small Bible college in the Mexican state of Coahuila, and her love for the Lord and her tremendous giftedness make her as fine a pastor and teacher to others as she is a friend to me. I love her with all of my heart, and while I'm 18 days older than she is, I really would like to grow up to be like Lupita. It's a privilege to call her "sister."

A young woman I know -- someone I consider a daughter and who considers me her mother -- lives in this country without papers. She is one of the bravest, strongest people I've ever met, sacrificing everything she has for her two children and living a life of such honor and integrity that I'm humbled to know she thinks so highly of me. I am not as brave as R., and the powerlessness and violence under which she lived, and under which she immigrated here from Central America, inspires me every day as a mother, even as I call her my daughter. May she someday fully grasp the depth and power of the Lord's love for her.

Finally, for today, is a saint who died a few years ago in her 90s. Francis Norris was the most gifted Bible teacher I've ever sat under -- she had an astonishing insight into the Word of God and a laser-beam ability to explain and apply the most difficult passages. I met her when I preached my very first sermon; I was in my late 30s and she was 83. We became dear friends, sparring back and forth over doctrine and politics, although we were more alike than either of us first realized. Francis was an unapologetic pacifist, a staunch Democrat, and a firebrand advocate for the poor, and she defended the integrity of the Scriptures and the truth of the Gospel with more passion and to greater effect than virtually anyone I've ever known. Most of all, she lived a life of worship and witness, and I miss her tremendously. When I see her in Heaven, she'll no doubt harp on me for not having had breakfast that or any other day, and I tear up thinking about it even now.

I'll have more heroes to discuss, and I'd love to hear of some of yours. God puts some remarkable jewels in our lives, and I thank Him daily for the ones who show me how to be more like Jesus.