The last time floats cruised down the ‘canyon of hero’s’ in downtown Manhattan, was when the NY Giants after won the super bowl. I was standing 20 rows deep, and felt grateful to be there. A million others had been forced to crane their necks an entire block away, to snap futile IPhone shots of their hometown heroes, specks among pixels. The crowd was going haywire, nearly hysterical with excitement. Yet, after the final float passed, and the last confetti floated to the pavement, all that was left was the clean up crews. Not very long after the parade had passed, even while the players spoke at city hall, Broadway was nearly back to normal. I thought to myself, how quickly glory fades.

Last week I walked along the same route, only this time on my way with a college intern to a local high school. I found myself saying, “here we are in the canyon of hero’s, yet the work we do today will have more significance, and enduring impact, then if we rode one of those floats.” “How so,” a wide-eyed, college freshmen blinked back at me. “When we share the gospel today, names could be chiseled into the Lamb’s book of life, to stay there forever.” I hadn’t meant to say it, but when the words were in the wind, they came back to me with more force than I intended.

In the moment, a hero is immortalized by millions of adoring people. Their accomplishments put new faith and bounce into the hearts of everyone. Proud Americans pour out of their tenements, to give honor where honor is due. Nothing can take away from that moment, but in the end that’s all it is—a moment. The names of hero’s past are now embedded in the sidewalks lining the route, where everyday the soles of men and women trample their good name.

You and I steward a larger story that unfolds each day, in every nook and cranny of the globe. We are ordinary men and women who go quietly about our office with a fire in our hearts, and words of life ready on our lips. We will probably never stand on a float in NYC and be adored by millions. But our names are chiseled in an invisible book where real heroes reside. Hebrews chapter 11 talks about them. These men and women who have walked before us, will us on, cheer our successes, and identify with our failures. They remind us that books are better than sidewalks for immortalizing a soul. They stand where we someday will. And you know what, they cheer! Can you hear them?

We have a lot to look forward to in the canyon of hero’s where God resides. All the great ones will be there, along with you and me. Will we ride a float? Perhaps, but then again I think instead, we’ll first be enthralled by the one True Hero, our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He stands this good day beside the throne of God, and prays for us, advocates for us, and most special of all, holds our front row ticket for a day of endless floats, in a place time can not erase.