8. Heroic Invisibilty
Heroic Invisibilty
We all need a standard, some measure of being able to say that we finished life well for the Lord. In the book, The Best is Yet to Be, we outline 6 cornerstones to finishing well. The first is called Heroic Invisibility.
Heroic invisibility means honoring our vows to the Lord regardless of any recognition from the world. It is living a life of integrity before an audience of One.
This is contrasted by the celebrity culture we all live in, which is obsessed with notoriety and the quest for personal attention. Everyone craves to have their moment on center stage.
Many invisible heroes are recorded in Hebrews 11. We will never know their names, but we stand on their shoulders. They are described as “men of whom the world was not worthy” implying how exceptional these individuals were in the eyes of heaven. Nothing on earth could come close in value to what they represented. The caves where they lived were far from the glow of the world’s limelight.
While we might not be martyred, scourged, stoned to death, or live in a cave, we do pay a price for living lives of faithfulness before the Lord. Most men and women, husbands and wives, parents and grandparents will be confronted by feelings of invisibility. There is often the lack of external affirmation for their caring deeds and the lonely burden of quiet suffering along the way.
Being heroic and invisible are two common descriptors for many biblical saints of old. The Book of Chronicles lists hundreds of names for people we know nothing about. Yet, they made it into the lineage of Jesus and the history of Israel. The libraries of heaven are filled with their deeds which went unnoticed on earth.
In a similar way, we have the opportunity to live fulfilled lives, knowing that invisibility on earth really means high visibility in heaven.
If you see someone living a heroic, but invisible, life for the Lord, take and moment to encourage them. Who knows, someone may do the same for you!
Scripture Review
But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you. (Matthew 6:3-4)
They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword; they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated (men of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground. (Hebrews 11:37-38)