Dear Son, With great power comes great responsibility.
It was 2002. You were seven years old, and we went to watch Spider-Man in the big theater on Cason Lane. You were a Batman fan, but you compromised. It was the first non-cartoon we went to, so it was a big deal.
Spider-Man did not disappoint. The movie was filled with special effects, menacing villains, and heart-pounding battles. Everything you would want for your first live-action hero movie.
But the one scene burned into my brain was a quiet scene at the end. Spiderman was leaving a graveside funeral (he was not in his costume). As he walked away, he remembered these words of wisdom from his Uncle Ben, “With great power comes great responsibility.”
The origin of the quote has been attributed to Voltaire, FDR, Stan Lee, and others. But I fall in the camp of those who ascribe it to Jesus.
In the middle of a large crowd of followers, Jesus pulled his small group of disciples aside and shared a few parables and these words, “To whom much is given, from him much is required.” Luke 12:48
You have been given much: ability, training, love, opportunity, friendship, travel, leadership – so – much is required.
Do not view this as a burden or stress. It is a wide-open opportunity for the rest of your life. Paul expresses this in one of his letters to the early church, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:10 (NKJV)
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Mike J Thomas 