There are always three lessons:

1. The one you prepared in the shower this morning
2. The one you actually gave.
3. The one the Spirit said you should have given---but that's so you can do better next time.

A Hero is someone we admire and try to emulate in terms of character, righteousness, morality.

There are few heroes today. It's really an age of anti-heroes. The evil and worldly are held up as examples, while the good and truthful are negated. In God's wisdom, and understanding our challenges, he has given us a whole book full of heroes. As teachers, help your students gather a gallery of heroes and heroines. If they practice and emulate the virtues and qualities of these men and women they can live OK in this heroless age.

Bro. Wilcox collected baseball cards as a boy. Now his heroes are Jonathan, Deborah, Moses, Esther, etc.

Lessons from heroes:

• I Samuel 17:34-37 The kids should know the story of David and Goliath. David was a hero there, but there's another part to this story. He had faced both the Lion and the Bear before he faced Goliath. He was prepared for the bigger battle because he had successfully fought the smaller ones. (Lion and bear are small??). The foundation of faith and courage had already been laid. Kids need to know that the small everyday battles are important. If they can't win those they won't be ready for the big ones that will come.
• Genesis 24:10-21 Rebecca at the Well. Tell the girls, if they've seen Johnny Lingo, that it's better to be a 10 camel wife than an 8 cow wife! Tell the boys that all the best girls are found at the well, so if they want to find a good wife, hang around the drinking fountain.
• Gen 24:12 It's a great kindness to the parent when a son/daughter gets a good worthy wife/husband. Still that way today.
• Ask students, "What words can you find in this passage that show Rebecca's attitude? She volunteers to help, goes down (not flat) to the well. [Most middle-east wells are down stairs or a hill----rubble has built up around them through the years.] She hastes, runs, gives enough water to fill 10 camels! She is eager to put forth the effort to perform the service. Then Gen 24:21----the world wonders! at those with this attitude.
• Isaiah 6 Isaiah's missionary call. Isaiah is in the presence of the Lord and recognizes his uncleanness. He coal on his lips is representative of his cleansing (Three cleansing agents in the OT are fire, water, and blood.) Once he is clean, then the Lord says that he needs to send someone----no info about where or for what, but Isaiah says "Here am I, send me." This is what our youth do today. They send in their papers and they get a call to Europe where they just have doors slammed in their faces, or to South America where they eat strange food, or to Asia where they learn an impossible language. (Bro. Wilcox son sent a letter from his mission that said he now really appreciated his dad-----because he'd worn a tie every day of his life!) These same youth grow up to accept church callings doing anything---even the nursery or the cub scouts.
• I Samuel 14 Johnathan. David was never a threat to the kingship of Saul, but he was a threat to Johnathan. But, Johnathan supports and hides David and strenghtens him. Johnathan is like Hyrum Smith as an elder brother---not like Laman. The story of David and Goliath is well known, but few know the story of Johnathan beating an entire Philistine army. I Samuel 14:6-16. The armor bearer is also a quiet hero. Tell story so students can imagine Johnathan climbing up the wall with his hands and feet, and slaying the 20 soldiers----and then the rest of the army melts away. Johnathan was as great as David!
• Daniel 3 Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. Have all the class stand up, and then tell 3 people not to sit down. Tell the rest of the class to sit. Of course, everyone stares at the 3 standing up. That's what happened to these 3. Dan 3:16. They did not do what was politically correct! Dan 3:18 What are the golden images of the world today? Dan 3:24-25 is the promise fulfilled. If we don't bow down to the God's of this world, we will be allowed to walk with Christ. [How did King N recognize the form of the son of God???] Ask students----if you don't do the politically or socially "correct" thing, what will be the consequences to you? problems and blessings......
• There is a female role counterpart to this in Abraham 1:11. 3 daughters of Onitah. They were sacrificed, but still have the same reward (we assume....).
• Esther (counterpart male story is Joseph sold into Egypt) The world is mad when we won't bow down to them. Ask students What is today's Haman? What threatens the destruction of God's people? In the OT when things get bad, the Lord calls a young person, like Esther or Joseph to help. Esther 4:11 This law was to protect the king from assassination. The scepter held out is a pardon. Our youth must be willing to walk alone and face the condemnation of the world. Esther 4:14 The Lord will solve the problem, with you or without you! The young people of the church are sent now to save the family and God's people. Esther 5 She has to accuse Haman---who has a great deal of political power---in order to save a righteous people. That is the greatest challenge to women---to go against the prevailing culture and raise up righteous children today.

• Judges 14-16 Samson. He made a covenant. Nazarite explained in Numbers 6. Supposed to be separate from the world, but Samson kept going down to play with the Philistines. Long hair is last symbol left of the covenant he made. When it was cut, he no longer had any vestige of his covenant left, and he had not the power of the Lord to make him stronger. Same with covenants today. Making and keeping covenants keeps us strong. The world would bind us and blind us.
• I Kings 11-12. Jeroboam I Kings 11:30-38 Great promises to Jeroboam---10 tribes back, reign over Israel, family rule forever. But, in 12:26-28 Jeroboam made a decision out of fear instead of out of faith, and it cost him everything. Q---what promises has the Lord made you? what decisions do you make because you are afraid? Do you lose virtue, integrity, hope? Example of young woman age 35+ who married outside church because she was afraid she'd never marry at all. Now she is miserable watching her children grow up without gospel in their lives.
• Isaiah 49 is about our day and us as heroes. Isa 49:22-23 is missionaries carrying new converts, and nursing them along.....
• Don't forget to look at all the prophets in the last 1/2 of OT and see heroes there, too.