More than Superheroes

Daredevil – To Display the Work of God

For this post and possibly my next post, I am going to break from my normal pattern a little bit. I will still talk about a specific superhero but I will also spend time focusing on my daughter. I have wanted to write about the superhero Daredevil ever since my wife and I adopted our daughter. My daughter’s name is Elizabeth and we usually call her Libby. The connection between Daredevil and Libby is that they are both blind. Daredevil became blind because of an accident when he was a child. Libby was born blind.

When Daredevil became blind as a child, it could have been easy for him to despair because of the loss of his sight. He certainly had difficulty adjusting to being blind. As Libby’s Father it would be easy to spend my time focusing on the negatives. I admit that there are times when I think about what my daughter will not be able to do. There are times that I see other kids running around in a park, playing with toys, or even watching television and I am reminded of what my daughter can’t do because she’s blind. There was one day when I saw a son playing a game of catch with his father and I actually started to tear up because that is something that I cannot do with Libby. Even though there are many things that Libby cannot do, I find myself being excited and joyous over what she is able to do.

Daredevil developed incredible abilities after becoming blind. His other 4 sense became heightened. He developed a radar sense which helped him to detect the environment around him. This radar sense more than compensates for his disability. He can locate objects around him with accuracy. His hearing is so well developed that he can even hear a person’s heartbeat or breathing. He can use that sense to tell if they are lying or to locate them during a fight. While Daredevil’s abilities are beyond a typical blind person, I see things in my daughter which remind me of Daredevil. Her sense of hearing and touch are fantastic.

I can’t remember exactly the first time it happened but I am still fascinated by how my daughter can locate me simply by hearing my voice. I remember coming home one day and seeing Libby playing with my wife. I got close to them because I wanted to surprise her. Libby was playing with something in front of her and I was on her side. I said, “Hi Libby, it’s Dad.” Immediately her hands were touching my face and she started giggling. She knew right where I was. Now she can navigate through our house, moving past furniture without difficulty, and she can find me just by following my voice. I am amazed by her ability to locate objects and people without having any visual frame of reference. She navigates the world by sound and touch.
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On a regular basis, I am amazed by what she is able to do. One day her teachers sent us a video of her walking down the hall at school with a pre-cane device. It was fantastic! Her language skills are coming along substantially. She has never been able to watch another mouth form sounds or syllables and yet she is figuring it out. She absolutely loves music. She listens to a lot of it at home and when there is no music playing, she will start singing songs that she has heard. There have been times that I can hear her singing “Jesus loves me” or a hymn that we sang that morning in church. She loves to play the piano. She doesn’t smash the keys like many kids. She deliberately presses one key at a time, sometimes playing with multiple fingers. At times we can hear a distinct melody. Just recently she has been able to say “Now I lay me” for her bedtime prayer – all by herself.

I have no idea what the future holds but I trust that God is going to use Libby for his glory. I think about the response that Jesus gave to the disciples in John 9. After they asked if the blind man had been born that way as a result of his sin or his parents’, Jesus said, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” Just like with that man, I trust that God is going to use Libby to display his work. In the case of the man in John 9, Jesus healed him of his blindness and the man shared his faith. Whether or not there are ever any treatments that could repair Libby’s physical sight, I still trust that God will use her to his glory.

God has already given her spiritual sight. Five days after we held her in our arms for the first time, she was baptized. The Holy Spirit entered her heart and created faith in Jesus. Her sins have been washed away through the cross of Christ. She is forgiven and has a home waiting for her in heaven. Church has always been one of her favorite places. We think that it is because of the music and the structure of the worship service. She will often try to repeat the songs and parts of the service. I think that Libby will glorify God through music. I think that she will grow up to be a fantastic instrumentalist or singer. No matter what she does, I believe that God will use her to his glory.

Another interesting point about Daredevil is that he is a Christian. He is Roman Catholic. He strives to use his abilities for good. His disability became a blessing and a way that he could fight crime. Regardless of what issues we face in this life, God can use us to his glory. He has already blessed us by sending Jesus to save us from our sins. He has guaranteed eternal life for his believers. He has blessed each of us with many abilities. Let’s use these abilities to glorify God. Let’s live our faith as we perform our daily tasks. Let’s share our faith in whatever way we can so that many more may see the love of Christ. Rather than focusing on any negatives, let’s look for the positive ways that we can display the work of God in our lives.

I am a Lutheran pastor who is currently serving at Trinity in Belle Plaine, MN. My wife is Megan and my daughter is Elizabeth "Libby". I have two dogs (Labradors) - Samson and Charlie. In my spare time, I train for and run in marathons, I cheer for the Green Bay Packers, and I love the Comic Book genre of entertainment.

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