While watching The Dark Knight for a second time, I was convicted in a brand new way...

Harvey Dent (who later came to be known as Harvey Two-Face), started off strong, courageous, noble, forthright, honest and true. He single-handedly faced off against evil (The Mob and other similar characters) and won. Fear was the furthest thing from his mind.

His early victory, sadly enough, was synonymous to you or I flooring Mike Tyson with a lucky punch. It's only later we realize that we didn't actually knock Mike down, but that he merely lost his footing. We simply delivered the necessary blow to lay him down completely...

The Enemy of Our Souls

Enter the Joker: a fiendish character who Batman even wrote off as a nobody from the very beginning. Unfortunately, neither the good guys or the alleged bad guys could've possibly fathomed what was to come next. Call it the rise of the Joker -- the mastermind behind the chaos that overtook the city. Things became so grim that the comic book hero even questioned himself.

But, that's besides the parallel I'm attempting to paint for you.

Many of us, Christians or not, are much like Harvey Dent before losing everything. Brave, righteous, upholders of justice... a whisper in a very desperate ear.

The devil, like the joker, wants to prove to God that no matter how clean, pure, courageous or righteous any of us think we are, we can fall hard, fast and far...

An entire city depended upon the symbol that Harvey became. The trouble with being a hero is -- he/she is NOT incorruptible.

Standing Against Evil?: Prepare to be Put in Line of Fire

Some of us may feel singled out by fate and the unfair hands we've been dealt in this life; so like Harvey, at the first sign of real trouble, we falter and faint...

I am such a man... I've fallen farther than I could've ever imagined.

But, this movie ministered to me in ways that I can't fully explain.

There's nothing flattering at all about being handpicked by the enemy to prove a point to a haughty and high-and-mighty God; or, at least that's how the devil wants us to view Him. But, in these dark times (for some, the times are more darker than others), it pays to take a moment and recognize who the true enemy is.

When any of us takes a stand against evil, or stands alone as a sheep amongst wolves, our enemy will never just stand idly by as we begin uncovering his evil schemes.

Personally, I've never been called a White Knight, but I wasn't exactly a poster child for evil either.
On the surface, I was atypical for a kid who grew up on the mean streets of Brooklyn. So instead of whining and complaining "why me?" (as I was once famous for constantly doing), I now ask, "why NOT me?"

Harvey Dent should not have been surprised at the retaliation from his enemies that eventually cost him the love of his life and, quite frankly, neither should any of us. 

Wherever you are in your walk with God, wherever you are spiritually, pay heed to the fact that there is a devil; a fiendish character who has nothing to lose and proves that age-old adage 'misery loves company' true every single day.

The Super Hero Complex

I claim no self-righteousness or holiness. I look to God to open my mind and renew my heart's shape. My views have darkened as of late; the words flowing from my mouth haven't recently been good ones; my thoughts are shadier than ever. I stand before you all (as I have always fearlessly and unabashedly stood) a broken and scattered man.

In the movie Harvey Dent professes, "you either die a hero, or you live long enough to WATCH yourself become the villain."

The only way to maintain the former and shirk the latter is to die to self daily.

Being a hero is HARD work, so please, if you're anything like me (or how I used to be), please shed the feel-good feelings one gets when imagining the accolades that accompany being a hero. 

Because at the end of the day, there's so much more to it than that. Are you willing to die to self daily? Hourly? Are you willing to risk looking like the Villain and stand alone for what's right? For what's good?

The choice (free will) is yours...