Each of us has been granted a unique set of passions and abilities. We can feel it in the recesses of our soul. And we can also sense we are meant to use these gifts for something important. We have a longing for greatness. A capacity to do good. Like the superheroes in the movies, we have talent that’s eager and ready for action.

The temptation is to use this power for selfish gain. As Uncle Ben tells Spiderman, “With great power comes great responsibility”. The only difference between a superhero and a super villain is in where they direct their powers; to promote self or to serve others.

Throughout the Bible, we see the call on humanity to serve one another. Jesus washes the feet of the disciples. Paul talks about the church as the Body of Christ, imploring us to bear one another’s burdens. The message is clear. Our gifts are meant to help others.

The villains in the movies are the ones who use their powers of intellect, skill, and money to build devices and schemes that serve their own lust for power. They attempt to use their abilities to control others. To make others serve them.

Heroes, on the other hand, see that their power is a responsibility. It is an equipping toward serving others, meant for the edification of the community as a whole.

Our unique passion and ability are vehicles of tremendous power. God has granted us the awesome responsibility to choose how to use them. 

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.”
– Galatians 5:13