Now dubbed the ‘Spiderman of the 18th’ Mamoudou Gassama was a passer-by when he noticed from a 4thfloor Paris balcony a child dangling by his fingertips, poised to drop to the ground at any moment. Without thinking Mamoudou ran across the street and in seconds had climbed the outside of the building and rescued the boy, to the astonishment of those gathered below. A migrant who only arrived in France a year ago, Mamoudou quickly found himself a guest of the President at the Elysee Palace and came away with French citizenship and a job in the fire service.
Asked why he had done it Mamoudou explained ‘Once I’d started God gave me the courage to continue. The more I climbed the more I had the courage to climb higher.’
It’s perfect illustration of what it means to ‘live by faith’ – Mamoudou took a step into the unknown, unsure about whether he could complete the task ahead of him, but having taken the first step discovered that God was with him and gave him strength to continue.
Jesus invites us all to take such steps of faith into the Kingdom of God, and our reward is not French citizenship and a job in the fire service, but citizenship in the Kingdom of Heaven and a job saving others!