One day while our two oldest sons were home for Christmas, we rented the movie The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. If you saw the movie (or any one of the three in the Trilogy), you know that there are many strong, capable, and courageous characters in the story. Yet I was most impressed by an unassuming "hobbit" named Sam rather than by one of the "real heroes" in the story. About midway through the movie Faramir, Captain of Gondor, begins to question the main character, Frodo, and asks: "Who are you?" He replies, "We are Hobbits of the Shire. I am Frodo Baggins and this is Samwise Gamgee." Then Faramir turns to Sam and asks, "Are you his bodyguard?" Sam replies, "No, his gardener." I don't know about you, but I don't consider myself much of a hero. I was never a star athlete or class president. I'm not rich or famous. But, I'd like to think that I am a good "Sam." Even though Sam is only the gardener and has no qualifications for a dangerous mission, he faithfully stands beside Frodo and steadfastly plunges forward. Even Frodo realizes that he would never have made it without the encouragement and support of his loyal friend, Sam. After the movie, I commented to my oldest son that we need more "Sams" in the world. I think there are many "Sams" in Romans 16. The chapter is filled with names of believers whose names don't appear anyplace else in the scriptures. Paul writes, "Greet Urbanus, our fellow worker in Christ, and my dear friend Stachys. Greet Apelles, tested and approved in Christ. Greet those who belong to the household of Aristobulus. Greet Herodion, my relative. Greet those in the household of Narcissus who are in the Lord. Greet Tryphena and Tryphosa, those women who work hard in the Lord. Greet my dear friend Persis, another woman who has worked very hard in the Lord." (Romans 16:9-12) I don't think I'll ever be a Peter or a Paul but I can be an Urbanus or an Apelles. You may not be like Mary or Martha but maybe you can be a Tryphena or Tryphosa. Paul the apostle also said, "Now it is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful." (1 Corinthians 4:2) You and I may not be super Christians, but we can be faithful and God can use us to make a huge difference in our world. Like Sam in the movie, we just need to do our part serving the Lord to the best of our ability. You may not be especially qualified for the job, but just being there and doing your best, day in and day out, is what it takes to eventually get the job done. I like to consider myself a plodder, and I think the church and the world need more plodders . . . like Sam. My favorite line in the movie is near the end when Sam says to Frodo: "There is some good in this world Mr. Frodo, and it is worth fighting for." Without a doubt, the cause of Christ is worth fighting for. I would like to encourage you today to be a Sam or an Urbanus or a Tryphena. "Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good." (Romans 12.21) Fight the good fight and don't give up until you finish the race, and you can rest assured that you will receive the crown of righteousness from the Lord, the righteous Judge. (2 Timothy 4:7-8) --------- (c) 2004 Larry Zinck <zinck@...>. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----