The Courage of Everyday Heroes | A Guest Post from Joan Campbell

By Joan Campbell @JoanCam1

As a fantasy writer, I’ve created my fair share of epic heroes. 

Generally, these characters are good with swords, bows, arrows—anything sharp, in fact. They’re faster, smarter and deadlier than the bad guys. They laugh in the face of danger and seem to have no fear. Courage should be their middle name (note to self for next book). These are the guys and girls who outwit, outplay and outlast, and if they don’t outlast it’s because they’ve heroically sacrificed themselves for another.

As much as we love these stereotypical heroes, I believe they do a disservice to the words ‘hero’ and ‘courage’.

Take a moment to consider this: who is the most courageous person you know?

It doesn’t take me long to cast my eyes around and find the true heroes in my life. My niece, battling major depression, who gets up every morning to take care of her little Pekinese and has just enrolled herself in a draftsman course. The man with a speech impediment who stands up to speak at Toastmasters. My daughter, on the Autism Spectrum, taking the first steps at independent living this year.

My list could go on.

• Women struggling to raise their children alone after their husband walked out on them.
• People fighting life-threatening illnesses with dignity.
• Grieving parents.
• Missionaries following a call on their lives to pack up and go to distant places.

These people are not laughing in the face of danger. They’re not always smarter or faster or stronger than their neighbour. They have plenty of fear, and wouldn’t call themselves courageous. But that is precisely what they are.

My country’s most courageous hero once said, “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” (Nelson Mandela)

Each of us needs courage to get through the specific challenges we face. 

On my own journey as a Christian writer, I’m starting to realise that this is the one quality I need in abundance. It’s not always easy sitting in front of a flickering blank screen and starting to type. Fear creeps in. What if no-one likes this? What if I begin but then grind to a halt? Perhaps I don’t have what it takes to be a writer.

If you manage to conquer those fears and actually produce a manuscript, a whole new set of fears kick in. Literary agents give you the brush off and rejection letters from publishers start to pile up. It’s difficult to keep writing when everything seems to tell you to give up. It’s very easy for discouragement to set in.

Dis-COURAGE-ment. Have you ever noticed the word courage in the centre of that? 

Discouragement steals away our courage. It lets fear take hold of us and dictate our feelings and actions. Discouragement is not easy to shake, but shake it we must. Even if it’s taking just one small step forward. I’m not sure what that small step is for you. Perhaps:

• Getting dressed and putting on some make-up.
• Making a call you’ve been dreading to make.
• Writing a paragraph of your story.
• Sending off your CV to a company, or your manuscript to a publisher.

Others might not recognise the bravery in that single step, but take it nevertheless.

And be en-COURAGE-ed. I applaud you for taking the step. Well done, Brave One - you did well today!

We’d love to hear and celebrate your stories of courage and small steps. Please share them in the comments below.

About Joan Campbell

Joan Campbell is a contributing devotional writer for The Upper Room and Scripture Union. Her first book Encounters: Life Changing Moments with Jesus is a collection of short stories, reflections, prayers and art. She particularly loves writing engaging fiction with the underlying message of God’s grace.

Her fantasy trilogy The Poison Tree Path Chronicles, published by Enclave Publishing, consists of Chains of Gwyndorr (winner of the 2017 Illumination Award), Heirs of Tirragyl and Guardian of Ajalon (releasing 11 September 2018). She and her husband Roy live in Johannesburg, South Africa, about an hour away from Pretoria, where their two daughters study.

Website | Amazon | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | BookBub

DEVOTION: What Difference Will You Make? ~ by Shirley Corder

A few weeks ago in church, the preacher spoke of a brief trip he had just taken with his wife to Portugal. They went sightseeing, visited the beach and restaurants, enjoyed the different culture for a week, and then came home refreshed. “But,” he said, “Portugal remains the same. We did nothing to change it.”

In 1992, my husband Rob and I travelled to Israel as part of a group of 20 Christians. We spent two weeks touring the Holy Land. We met and interacted with a few locals, we visited many famous sites, we experienced spiritual blessings, and we returned home to South Africa with a new enthusiasm for God’s Word. Many of us were changed. But Israel remained the same.

In June of 1964, anti-apartheid activist, Nelson Mandela, was sentenced to life imprisonment because of conspiracy to overthrow the state. He served 27 years in jail, 18 of them in the notorious Robben Island prison (picture above.). Even in that prison cell, he made a difference to the people he came into contact with. So much so that when he was released, he became the first president of the new democratic South Africa. When he died in December 2013, tributes from across the world gave some idea of the amazing difference this one man made in the lives of so many.

Nearly 2,000 years ago, Saul of Tarsus, a rabid persecutor of the Christian church, became the apostle Paul. He too spent many years in jail, and from there he wrote a number of the epistles that we read in the pages of our Bibles today. Who knows how many lives have been changed because that one man used his prison time to write and to reach out to the world within his reach.

Paul didn’t intend to become one of the greatest apostles. He simply wanted to reach individuals with the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Mandela didn’t seek the highest role in the land, nor did he aim to become a world-famous statesman. He wanted to help his people—the people of Africa—to live in harmony, to find freedom. 

How about you today? Do you feel as if you’re in some sort of prison? Are you too busy, too committed, too tied down—with children or family commitments, with work and career engagements—to even consider making a difference in anyone’s life?

Determine now that during this already-not-so-new year, 2014, you will make a difference in someone’s life. And of course, the greatest way you can do this is by introducing that person to the One who can make the greatest difference of all. Jesus Christ. It may be someone close to you. It may even be through a seemingly insignificant act. 

The first person I led to the Lord as a brand new Christian came about as a result of a dare. She wanted me to climb Table Mountain with her. I was terrified. Confident that she would say "No" to my invitation, I retorted, "I'll go up the mountain with you if you'll come to church with me." 

She said "Yes". 

She came to church with me, and in the middle of that night she woke me. She wanted to give her life to the Lord. Oh and by the way, I fell in love with Table Mountain and climbed it many times over the next few years! Both of us had our lives changed as a result of that short conversation.

So who knows? By reaching out even in a little way, you could make a huge difference in someone’s life. By telling them your own personal story of how you became a follower of Jesus Christ, you could transform them for eternity. By finishing that book you’ve dreamed of for so long, who knows how many lives may be impacted?

The Lord bless you as you carry on into 2014 with a firm resolve that this year YOU will make a difference!
 

SHIRLEY CORDER lives on the coast in South Africa with her husband. Her book, Strength Renewed: Meditations for your Journey through Breast Cancer contains 90 meditations based on her sojourn in the cancer valley. 

Please visit Shirley through ShirleyCorder.com, where she encourages writers, or at  RiseAndSoar.com, where she encourages those in the cancer valley. You can also meet with her on Twitter or FaceBook. 

HAMBA KAKUHLE TATA!

What an incredible week I’ve had. I fully intended blogging today on the birth of my grandson last Monday, or the arrival today of my youngest son from Finland whom I haven’t seen in over a year, or the signing and execution of a publishing contract with White Rose Publishers (Pelican Book Group) for my novelette set in Helsinki, Finland.

But on Friday, 6^th December, our nation woke to gray skies, heavy with rain—a fitting picture of South African hearts at the passing of anti-apartheid hero, Nelson Mandela, at 9 p.m. the night before. Our nation, and the world, is in mourning for this man revered as a moral giant.

I will never forget the day I first heard the name Nelson Mandela. I was about eighteen years old. A childhood friend and I were walking through the streets of Johannesburg. We’d both moved from our hometown to study and work in the city. As we chatted, she relayed the story about a T-shirt a varsity friend of hers had worn on campus. Written on the front were the words: Hang Nelson Mandela.

“Who’s Nelson Mandela?” I asked.

I grew up in the apartheid era. As my friend explained who Mandela was, an image formed in my mind. One that remained for many years. The man had been tried and sentenced to life in prison for high treason against the white-minority government and I came to see him as nothing more than a terrorist. This word struck fear in my heart, for these were the years when young white South African men (some my classmates) lost their lives on our borders fighting a war against terrorism.

But this exceptional man crept into the hearts of all South Africans, black and white alike. That is why I felt it fitting to use this blog post to pay tribute to a truly great man.

The morning after his death, the radio was abuzz with snippets of his life and interviews with those who knew him. I was particularly impressed by the interview with his Personal Assistant, Zelda la Grange.  After Mandela retired he was allowed to take one person from the staff with him into retirement—a privilege granted to all former presidents. He chose this white ‘boeremeisie’ (Afrikaans girl) who had come to be his secretary, butler, aide-de-camp, spokesperson, travelling companion, confidante and, honorary granddaughter.

Zelda relayed the story of the first time she met Nelson Mandela. She’d been working as a typist on the president’s personal staff for two weeks when she ran into him. He began to speak to her in a language she didn’t understand. “Pardon?” she said. When President Mandela spoke again, she realized he’d been addressing her in her native tongue, Afrikaans, something she hadn’t expected.

The reality of Nelson Mandela’s death hit home as I drove into work Friday morning and saw the row of flags flying half-mast on the flagpoles at our work entrance.

Seated at my desk, I scrolled through Facebook on my cellphone. The messages I found told the tale of a nation, and world, in mourning. The messages showed how revered and loved Nelson Mandela was—and still is:

• Our country is forever changed because of him.
• RIP Madiba. Thank you for bringing peace and hope to our country, South Africa. God bless Africa!
• Even the weather is mourning Madiba today.
• To an icon who epitomized humility and integrity! May his ideals live on in South Africa and beyond!
• Nelson Mandela faced racism face to face. With all of the challenges, his journey changed the course of history. He became an inspiration to so many, not only in South Africa, but around the world. His legacy will be remembered as one who accepted the mantle of leadership and responsibility. His example will be one of a hero to so many, regardless of nation, tribe or tongue! Thank you, Madiba, for choosing forgiveness and reconciliation over hate and conflict. RIP Madiba!
• Why do I feel like I’ve lost a friend? Hamba Kahle (Go well) Madiba. I will one day show my children photographs of you and say, “Look closely guys—that is the only evidence around today that proves that South Africa once had true leadership.”
• RIP Madiba. You showed humanity what can be achieved when we change our attitudes and perceptions.
• Fighting back the tears as we hear the sad/joyful news that the father of our nation rests now with The Lord of all creation. I can think of no other human being who has had more influence and wisdom and impact in so many lives and on this nation. An ordinary man. And we can call him ‘ours’. Thank you, Tata (Father). Today the angels are learning a new dance style in heaven – the Madiba!

• We mourn the passing of Nelson Mandela. God gave him to us to show the world that forgiveness can be shown by the great as well as the oppressed. He guided us through the transition of South Africa. May he rest in peace. He will never be forgotten and will always have a prominent place in the history of our land. May God comfort his family and our nation. RIP Madiba.
• RIP to an amazing leader. May we also strive to live a life of significance!
• Our challenge is to ensure that his vision lives on into the future. His genuineness and forthrightness will never be forgotten. What a privilege to have had a leader who walked and lived his truth.
• Humanity has not lost an icon, we have gained a legacy that we dare not disgrace.
• We will forever remember you, and the lessons you taught us. RIP Madiba.
• A true legend and selfless patriot of freedom has passed.Although I only lived in South Africa for the first part of my life, the ties I have to my country of birth are still strong within me. Today I feel a loss in my heart for the man who did so much to change a country of oppression into a brighter rainbow nation. It cannot be said enough: RIP Madiba.

Archbishop Desmond Tutu said, “The sun will rise tomorrow, and the next day and the next … It may not appear as bright as yesterday, but life will carry on.” With the rain, comes the rainbow, and Madiba (the honorary tribal name by which Mandela is largely known) has taught South Africa to be a true Rainbow Nation.

As one of my American Facebook friends rightly stated, South Africa could have had decades of civil war but for the attitude of Nelson Mandela.

In Mandela’s honor I’d like to post some of his top quotes. Each one is so challenging. What a man!

• “If I cannot change when circumstances demand it, how can I expect others to?”
• “What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.”
• “For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
• “Difficulties break some men but make others. No axe is sharp enough to cut the soul of a sinner who keeps on trying, one armed with the hope that he will rise even in the end.”
• “It always seems impossible until it's done.”
• “Lead from the back - and let others believe they are in front.”
• “I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”

• “Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.”
• “I could never reach the standard of morality, simplicity and love for the poor set by the Mahatma...While Gandhi was a human without weaknesses, I am a man of many weaknesses.”
• “It is never my custom to use words lightly. If 27 years in prison have done anything to us, it was to use the silence of solitude to make us understand how precious words are and how real speech is in its impact upon the way people live or die.”
• “The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
• “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”
• “When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace.” (1996)

Hamba kakuhle tata! (Go well Father!) May your legacy of forgiveness, justice, equality and humanity live on forever.

 

 

Marion Ueckermann’s passion for writing was sparked in 2001 when she moved to Ireland with her husband and two sons. Since then she has published devotional articles and stories in Winners (2009), The One Year Devotional of Joy and Laughter (August 2011 - Tyndale House Publishers) and Chicken Soup for the Soul: Miraculous Messages from Heaven (15 October 2013). She blogs for International Christian Fiction Writers and belongs to Christian Writers of South Africa and American Christian Fiction Writers. She now lives in Pretoria East, South Africa in an empty nest with her husband and their crazy black Scottie, Wally.