EP!C

To say that I had an overactive imagination as a child would be the understatement of the century. My imagination ran like it drank a Red Bull every thirty minutes. It stayed in overdrive. Whether it was imagining what it would be like if we walked on the ceiling instead of the floor or imagining Nancy the Monster who gave me nightmares for years, my imagination was already running.

If I ever found myself alone for any extended period of time, my imagination kicked into overdrive and I entered an entirely different world… a world where crime was rampant. A metropolitan little town known only as….

Black Jack City

(Cue the thematic superhero music and movie narrator voice.)

Black Jack City was a nice town by most standards. There were a good number of wealthy citizens, a good school system and parks seemingly on every corner. The only problem with Black Jack City was that it was riddled with crime and corruption. Crime bosses ran the town and corrupt police officers could not and would not do anything about it. The town was in need of a hero. The town was in need of… drumroll please…

Ice Man.

Ice Man had been just a normal citizen by the name of Jordan LeShock before the accident. An unfortunate collision with a high-jacked ice cream truck had left Jordan with a block of ice for a torso (Cut me some slack; I was eight years old and that was the best I could come up with). After his extended stay in the local hospital, Jordan began to notice that he had developed some special powers. He now had the ability to control ice and snow! He could reach into his chest and pull out snow balls or ice cubes, which are great for making bad guys slip and fall down. With his trusty sidekick twins, Blade and Blaze, he devoted his life to fighting crime in Black Jack City. He became the hero that Black Jack City needed.

I was thinking about this aspect of my childhood the other day and I couldn’t help but laugh. Ice Man? Really? That’s the best I could do?

Maybe it was because I was too much into Power Rangers or Ninja Turtles or Batman, but whatever the excuses are for why I created this superhero that I pretended to be when nobody was around, one thing I know is true: I wanted to be epic.

I wanted to be the hero. I wanted to be the celebrity crime fighter that fought off all of the evil villains. I wanted to be the one that the girls wanted to date and the guys wanted to hang out with. I wanted people to be so excited when I walked into a room that they exclaimed, “Ice Man is here!” I wanted to be the one to save my city from the evil. I wanted to be epic.

And although it was just a childhood fantasy, when it comes to my life and my relationship with God, I still wanted to be epic.

I wanted to be the one that prayed through thousands of my fellow students in high school. I wanted to be the one to go oversees and see millions come to God. I wanted to be able to walk into a room and have people recognize me as a follower of God. I wanted to be like Paul. I wanted to be like Daniel. I wanted to be like David. I wanted to be like all of the incredible characters in the Bible. I wanted my relationship with God to be epic.

Let’s be honest; nobody creates a fantasy where they’re not the superhero. Nobody dreams of one day being an innocent bystander in a superhero story. Nobody dreams of being the victim. Nobody wants to be less than epic. Nobody wants to be the sidekick. I remember growing up and playing superheroes with my cousin. Inevitably, we would end of fighting over who got to be Batman and who got to be Robin. I remember countless times that we actually got into physical altercations because of it—because everyone wants to be the hero.

Everyone wants to be epic.

And really, we should all want that. We should all want to leave our mark on the world for the Kingdom of God. We should strive to worship like David, pray like Daniel, and share the Gospel like the Apostles.

The problem is, we have incorrectly defined what it means to be epic in the eyes of God and have caused ourselves to become discouraged when we don’t measure up to that.

In high school, I tried my best to share God with my friends. I invited them to church, I taught Bible studies, I talked about God, I shared all the cool stuff He was doing in my life; but it seemed that—no matter how much I tried—I could only get a few guys to agree to do a Bible Study with me.

I was actually discouraged because only a few of my friends agreed. It bothered me. It hindered me from being able to teach the Bible studies like I needed to because I knew I only had a few people that I was going to teach. Take a step back and look at that. I was upset because only three people signed up for Bible Studies, instead of being excited that three people had signed up.

I honestly thought that God was upset with me for only being able to get those three to agree. I thought He would think less of me. I thought that I was so far away from being epic that I wasn’t even on His radar. I got really discouraged because I thought I wasn’t making a difference.

But that is where I was wrong. The problem with me—and with all of us at times—is that my definition of epic and His definition of epic were two entirely different things. I thought that if I couldn’t reach my whole school at once, then I was nowhere near epic. But when He looked at me and saw that I did the best I could, tried my hardest and managed to get three people to agree to this Bible Study, He saw someone who was epic. He saw someone who was following the leading of His Spirit and that was epic enough for Him.

Regardless of the results, when you try your best and follow what God is asking you to do, you will be epic in His eyes.

You don’t have to be David, or Daniel, or Paul, or John, or Joshua, or Moses. To be epic in the eyes of God, all you have to do is try your best and follow what His will is for your life.

There is a story told in Mark chapter twelve about a widow that gave two mites to the Kingdom of God. The story goes on to say that Jesus saw it happen and took notice of her action. In today’s currency, her offering amounted to less than a penny. Was that anything close to an epic offering? Absolutely not, but Jesus looked at her offering and told His disciples that no one had given a greater offering that day.

What can seem so insignificant in our eyes sometimes is epic in the eyes of God.

The most epic students in society may not seem epic to everyone else; but to God, they are epic.

Let me clarify this. Right now, reading this article are students that will absolutely shake their generation. There are future missionaries, future Youth Pastors, future Pastors, future soul winners and future world changers. There are students reading this who God is calling to do big things, lead big movements, lead big ministries, and see big results. For you to become epic in the eyes of God, it will require big sacrifices, big commitments, and big prayer lives. God is leading towards incredible things, and I pray that His voice guides you along the way to fulfilling His purpose for your life.

But there are some students reading this that may not lead the biggest ministries one day, that may not ever pastor a church or lead a student ministry. There are some that may never see the huge results that others may see. But you can be just as epic in the eyes of God by following the leading of His Spirit and fulfilling His purpose for your life.

And regardless of which of these two categories you fall into, you can make a huge difference in your world—whether it is reaching three students in your school or reaching 3,000.

Becoming epic is about fulfilling God’s will and purpose for your life, whether it is becoming a preacher, missionary, or doctor.

Whether you have felt that calling yet or not, He has called us all to a unique work that is all our own to accomplish; and to accomplish that purpose for our lives is what makes us epic in His eyes.

It may not happen overnight and it may take work. But if you do your best at what God is calling you to do; follow His word and His Voice and fulfill His will for your life—you can and will become Epic.

So grab your cape and call your sidekicks, because you are EP!C in His eyes.