On September 11, 2001, there were so many heroes who gave their lives as they bravely went to the aid of those trapped in the Twin Towers in New York City. Firemen and Police Officers and Paramedics and EMTs responded to the calls that went out for assistance. And many of those brave men and women lost their lives that day.  

Others were able to assist those trapped in the rubble, and led them to safety. In response to those attacks on our soil, U.S. service men and women were sent to foreign lands to fight for the freedoms that we as Americans hold so dear. Many of those who went to fight on our behalf did not return home alive.  

Others came home severely wounded warriors. There are still so many brave men and women representing the USA in a foreign land fighting in the longest war in our country’s history. This coming Friday, September 11, all across our nation and around the world, people are stopping to remember the great tragedies of that infamous day. People will be remembering the innocent lives that were lost and those men and women who gave their lives in service.  

They were heroes, real true heroes. Those folks were not the highly paid stars of rock or pop or R&B or rap or sports or TV or movies. Nonetheless, they are our true Superstars. They are the real, true heroes. These underpaid women and men didn’t do the job for fame or fortune, but because it was the right thing to do. They were the men and women who were willing to lay down their lives for another, for you and me.  

Today, in September 2021, heroes are all around us, responding to a global pandemic. They are not just those who wear a uniform, but they are those who show us the right way to live by their example. They are the ones who make us want to live right because they have shown us how it’s done. Sometimes heroes live next door to us, or work next to us on the job. Sometimes the heroes sit next to us at church or live in our own homes. We have heroes that teach our classes at school, or stand in the pulpits of our places of worship, or take care of us when we are hospitalized, or when we are in need of medical care. They are the “essential workers.”  

There are heroes at the pharmacy or the grocery store or the day care. There are heroes at the nursing homes and assisted living centers, those precious women and men who care for our elderly friends and family members. There are heroes all around us. They are there when we need them and sometimes when we don’t even realize we do.  

Poet Edgar A. Guest, wrote a poem entitled “Heroes.” 

There are different kinds of heroes, there are some you hear about. They get their pictures printed and their names the newsboys shout; There are heroes known in glory that were not afraid to die; In the service of their country and to keep the flag on high; There are brave men in the trenches, there are brave men on the sea, But the silent, quiet heroes also prove their bravery. I am thinking of a hero that was never known to fame, Just a manly little fellow with a very common name; He was freckle-faced and ruddy, but his head was nobly shaped, And he one day took the whipping that his comrades all escaped. And he never made a murmur, never whimpered in reply; He would rather take the censure than to stand and tell a lie. And I’m thinking of another that had courage that was fine, And I’ve often wished in moments that such strength of will were mine. He stood against his comrades, and he left them then and there When they wanted him to join them in a deed that wasn’t fair. He stood alone, undaunted, with his little head erect; He would rather take the jeering than to lose his self-respect. And I know a lot of others that have grown to manhood now, Who have yet to wear the laurel that adorns the victor’s brow. They have plodded on in honor through the dusty, dreary ways, They have hungered for life’s comforts and the joys of easy days. But they’ve chosen to be toilers, and in this their splendor’s told: They would rather never have it than to do some things for gold. Let’s remember the heroes. And I want to encourage you to be a hero to someone yourself. Live your life so that others will see your example, an example for good, and may they call you their “Hero.”  

I have kept a drawing that my oldest son, Gabriel, drew of me years ago. He pictured me flying through the air with my cape fluttering in the wind behind me. He wrote, “My Dad is my Super Hero.” What a treasure. What a title I will strive to live up to. Let’s remember our heroes this week, and thank God that He has surrounded us with His Super Heroes. It’s hard to believe that it is nearly September. Make the most of it. And be heroic.