This week, we embrace the truth that our greed for the things of the earth died with Christ on the cross so that we might live to seek the treasures of God in heaven instead.

God sent Jesus to turn off the dark. Light is not only what He is, it’s who He is—the light of the world, and those who follow Him no longer walk in the darkness.

We recall that our arrogant pride has been buried with Christ so that we might selflessly live for others.

A full stomach is temporary, but a full soul is forever. This is what Jesus, the bread of life, is willing to give us if we ask.

On Ash Wednesday, we remember that Christ enables us to daily die to our sins to live a new life in him.

Why are “you” on the list of broken heroes? Because God certainly can and does use you to do incredible things, but you are broken by sin. You know what you’ve done, and you probably often feel inadequate or messed up as a result. But where you see broken, God sees perfect, just like the many other broken heroes in the Bible.

This one might be unexpected on the list of broken heroes. Yet, John definitely was one. Once, he wanted to reign down fire on people and he was often prone to outbursts of anger. On the other hand, John was Jesus’ beloved disciple. This was all because of Jesus’ gracious love and how he used all his disciples despite their flaws.

You would think based on Samson’s strength, that he would have been one of the Bible’s mightiest heroes, yet he trusted the wrong people and violated God’s laws on numerous occasions. From his story we learn not to trust in our own abilities, but to simply use them to advance God’s kingdom.

Jonah is probably the picture of a broken hero. He had the opportunity to go and share some news that would have caused an entire city to turn from their evil ways. But he ran away instead and, in the process, endangered the lives of some innocent sailors. Jonah’s story is one with great instruction for us especially when we feel like running from God.

Job. What a guy and what a story. To most of us, Job is just a hero, not a broken one. Yet, Job’s faith did eventually fracture, he began to argue with God, and he failed to completely surrender to God. But, in the end, Job repented, his faith was renewed, and he teaches us how to trust God completely in all circumstances.