I was reading in the paper today about the heroine Irena Sendler. In WWII she was a Roman Catholic social worker in Poland that was allowed to enter the Warsaw ghetto by the Nazi's. Irena then saved approximately 2500 Jewish children by adopting them out of the ghetto to non-Jewish foster families. She keep the children's real parental records in jars buried behind her home. The following is an excerpt from her web site http://www.irenasendler.org
They found that Irena Sendler, as a non-Jewish social worker, had gone into the Warsaw Ghetto, talked Jewish parents and grandparents out of their children, rightly saying that all were going to die in the Ghetto or in death camps, taking the children past the Nazi guards (in body bags, saying they were ill, or using one of the many means of escape from the Ghetto-the old courthouse for example), and then adopting them into the homes of Polish families or hiding them in convents and orphanages. She made lists of the children's real names and put the lists in jars, then buried the jars in a garden, so that someday she could dig up the jars and find the children to tell them of their true identity.
The Nazis captured her and she was beaten severely, but the Polish underground bribed a guard to release her, and she entered into hiding.
That she was almost unknown until four rural Kansas students got a school assignment, again from the web site: In the fall of 1999, Mr. Conard encouraged four students to work on a year long National History Day project which would among other things; extend the boundaries of the classroom to families in the community, contribute to history learning, teach respect and tolerance, and meet our classroom motto, “He who changes one person, changes the world entire."
Three ninth grade girls, Megan Stewart, Elizabeth Cambers, and Jessica Shelton, and an eleventh grade girl, Sabrina Coons, accepted the challenge and decided to enter their project in the National History Day program. Mr. Conard showed them a short clipping from a March 1994 issue of News and World Report, which said, 'Irena Sendler saved 2,500 children from the Warsaw Ghetto in 1942-43'. He told the girls the article might be a typographical error, since he had not heard of this woman or story. The students began their research and looked for primary and secondary sources throughout the year.
God selects his heroes from all walks of life, with all different forms of abilities, to carry out his great and holy plan. Heroes are not made; they're are people placed into unique circumstances that made the choice to act in accordance with God's will and teachings. The Bible is full of unlikely (David), unwilling (Jonah) and ungifted (Moses), right place right time (Ester), heroes.
Every day we should go out into our worlds and try to find the places where we are called to be a hero like Irena Sendler.
Amos 3:7 Surely the Sovereign LORD does nothing without revealing his plan to his servants the prophets.
Exodus 3:10-12
10 So now, go. I am sending you to Pharaoh to bring my people the Israelites out of Egypt."
11 But Moses said to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt?"
12 And God said, "I will be with you. And this will be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you [a] will worship God on this mountain."
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