Heroes

Who is your hero?

As children, we look at heroes that can fly, that fight crime, and that defend the weak in hopeless battles. These are elements that are essential for a childhood hero. 

As we grew up, we realized what a hero really is: someone we look up to and respect because of who they are and what they do. In this sense, we find great men and women who we try to emulate. Men and women like George Washington, Mahatma Ghandi, Marie Curie, Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, and many others. These heroes inspire us to become more than who we currently are. They inspire us to do something with our lives. As we grow physically, we find many of these heroes.

Then as we grow spiritually, we discover an entirely new class of heroes. This class of heroes are men and women who not only inspire us to become more than who we are, but also inspire us to reach out and lift others. These are men and women who put others' needs before themselves. They have learned an important truth: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13) These include people like Moses, Elijah, Mohammed, Budha, Joseph Smith, and many others. 

One such man was named Moroni. He was the chief captain of an Ancient American army who was fighting to defend their people from oppressors. He encouraged his people to fight "In memory of [their] God, [their] religion, and freedom, and [their] peace, [their] wives, and [their] children." (Alma 46:12) And he was successful. Because he reached out, his people were in turn lifted up and encouraged. As they fought to that end, they won the war.

It was said of him that "if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men." (Alma 48:17) This is more than a statement that Moroni was a good man. This is an invitation for us to live our own lives "in memory of our God, our religion, and freedom, and our peace, our wives, and our children." (Alma 46:12) As we do so, then the devil will not have power over our hearts or those of our family and friends.

Of course, we cannot forget the ultimate Hero. Not only did Jesus Christ teach His followers to live a higher law, but He gave His own life so that His people could be redeemed from an eternal bondage. Because of our Redeemer Jesus Christ, death is no longer the end. Because of our Redeemer, our mistakes can be corrected. Because of our Redeemer, we can learn from those mistakes. Because of our Redeemer, we can experience the joy of becoming more than who we are and the joy of helping others to likewise become more than they are.

So, ask yourself, who is your hero? Who are you going to become? Then follow this with another question: Who will see you as a hero, and who do you hope they will become? Then live your life in a way that as others follow in your footsteps, you can have joy in knowing that they are really walking in the footsteps of the Redeemer.

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