You Are Legend (Really)

Then he had another dream, and he told it to his brothers. "Listen," he said, "I had another dream, and this time the sun and moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me." When he told his father as well as his brothers, his father rebuked him and said, "What is this dream you had? Will your mother and I and your brothers actually come and bow down to the ground before you?" His brothers were jealous of him, but his father kept the matter in mind. (Genesis 37:9-11)

It’s one of the holiday’s hottest flicks. I Am Legend, starring Will Smith, is a sci-fi thriller about the last man on the planet—an Army colonel and scientist named Robert Neville. The apocalyptic mutation of a viral cure for cancer has decimated 90% of the world’s population. Of the survivors, the virus degenerates man and beast into terrifying monsters that live only in darkness and thrive on flesh, especially human.

Neville is convinced his life’s calling is to create a cure for the beasts, to save them from themselves and return society to normal. When others persuade him to abandon this aspiration, including his own wife and child, Neville resists. “This is ground zero,” he says of Manhattan Island and he will die for his dream to save humanity.

It's odd, I know. But legends tend to rise from ashes. The great men and women in history lived larger lives than even they imagined. Those who dare to dream are few and when a dreamer shares his vision you can bet your last dollar there’ll be criticism and complaints, rebukes and resistance. Dreamers are only silenced when they no longer speak.

Just ask Joseph. His dream painted a rosy picture where even his parents would bend to his will. Joseph was destined to be an A-lister, top dog, commander-in-chief, head honcho and the big kahuna. Lil Joe would one day own the Ponderosa and be Hoss’ boss. Dreams like that don’t go unnoticed nor do they attract affection or affirmation. And there’s no indication how the dream impacted Joseph. Maybe he hated it as much as is brothers. Maybe the weight of the vision was too heavy for a teen. Maybe he used the dream against his brothers. We really don’t know what Joseph felt, but we do know his legendary dream invited jealousy, anger, pain and rebuke (from his father no less). We also know his heroic vision would mean years in prison, unfairly accused and his character slandered.

That’s why legends rise from ash piles and garbage heaps. Legends are built not born. Legends are uncommon, unbelievable and undeniable—whether it’s a nomad cattle kid becoming Pharoah’s finest leader or a lone army doc bent on crafting a cure to save a savage society. When the credits finally roll in both screenplays, Joseph and Robert live their dreams (though with different twists).

Legends give hope. Legends offer salvation. Legends never die. It’s why our culture hungers and hates heroes in the same breath. Legends remind us of our immortality, of our unmet destiny, and our unfulfilled desires. Legends reveal God and how we have missed the mark. They also tap into our deepest need to make a difference and leave the world slightly better than how we found it.

Are we legend? Yes, in a way we are. If only we can believe it.


NOTABLE QUOTABLES ON DREAMS:

You see things; and you say, "Why?" But I dream things that never were; and I say, "Why not?" (George Bernard Shaw)

I have learned, that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. (Henry David Thoreau)

Hope is a waking dream. (Aristotle)

Hold fast to dreams, for if dreams die, life is a broken winged bird that cannot fly. (Lanston Hughes)

The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams. (Eleanor Roosevelt)

Father, we all possess a legendary dream. Perhaps we have forgotten it. Perhaps we have buried it. Perhaps we run from it. We seek your Strength to value the Vision You have placed in our heart. We invite your Wisdom to separate the wheat from the chaff, the eternal from the temporary and the truth from the lie. Jesus, we thank You for being a Legend for all time. Because of You, nothing is impossible. Amen.