Published by All the children, including me, filed into the wooden hut – it was an actual classroom but an outside annex from the main school building of our junior school. The noise subsided when Mrs Edmonson eventually arrived 5 minutes later.
“This morning” she declared, “I want you all to write down who your hero is and give a brief reason why that person is your hero” There became a lot of excited discussion that had to be quelled by the teacher on numerous occasions.
My friend sitting next to me decided to choose an American basketball player, other children nearby chose some famous celebrity on television.
I thought long and hard and decided to choose Jesus Christ as my hero. He was more important than any passing celebrity and he was the one I had put my faith in when standing on the pitch of a stadium in Sheffield of one of Billy Graham’s Crusades.
Once everybody had chosen a hero, we were all asked by the teacher to stand up and say who our hero was and why. When I stood up I had the opportunity to say why Jesus Christ was my hero. I talked about God’s love and how we can find freedom from the power of sin through Jesus’s sacrifice on the cross. During my speech there were a few jeers and some giggles, but I didn’t care.
I look back at that opportunity with thankfulness in my heart that God had given me the opportunity to glorify him. Everyone had listened to my simple message and I had been a powerful witness to everyone including the teacher.
