I was reading about
the life of Albert Einstein the other day and I was shocked to know that after
he died, His brain was removed and preserved by the pathologist in an attempt
to know what made him so unique, intelligent and such a genius. He was the
theoretical physicist who developed one of the two pillars of the modern day
physics.
A popular phrase we
hear often is to “Live full and die empty”. It’s a common admonition for
people to fulfil their purpose and not to die loaded. There is even a book by
Rick Godwin by that title. So I gave it a deeper thought and wonder how
true this just might be. A baby comes into this world naked with both hands
clenched; warm body, tiny feet, weeny fingers, loud cries with a tiny voice. Oh
what beautiful and innocent souls they are. Fast forward a couple of 70 years
and there lays the man; stone cold, hands totally open, eyes shut, naked. Yes
absolutely naked as the body is being prepared for burial. The baby has nothing
at birth except its fragile body and the dead person as he departs has nothing
on him save the same naked howbeit grown body.
The Maker has set
out what we need to accomplish. He has embedded us with gifts and talents,
there is a blueprint for all of us, there is a book written about us all. Our
likes and dislikes right from childhood are pointers to what gifts He has put
inside of us. Have you noticed some babies who love the sound of music? When
the baby is crying and you start to sing or play some kind of music, the baby
stops to cry, stares at you and tries to get the source of the music. Mine is
one of such amazing gift and blessing. You see some children who all they want
to do is draw and paint. Some at such early age sing beautifully. You see
leadership abilities in some in the way they coordinate their peers even at age
2!
Okay we learn, we
grow, we absorb knowledge through what we see and hear; For what reason? To
give back to our world. The reason everyone needs to identify why they are here
so they can live out the reason why they have been sent.A story strikes me in the bible and I can’t just stop pondering on
the encounter.
Elisha, a renowned
man of God had gotten a double portion of the anointing on His Master Elijah
and he went about doing some really amazing acts under the influence of the
unction he had received. Needless to say he did so much with this endowment:
Through him Naaman the influential but leprous soldier was healed, the
Shunnamite woman who had no son received a son and the same son was raised to
life after he died through the ministry of Elisha. He crossed the sea; bread
was multiplied through His ministry, there was the miraculous multiplication of
oil and so on. I could count distinctly about 14 miracles Elijah who was
his mentor did in his lifetime and Elisha his servant by reason of the double
portion transference did about 28 miracles (I know there are more). Every story
in the bible is written for a purpose and without mincing words, we truly ought
to revere this word of God . Only eternity will reveal whether
he maximized his gifting or not, but he served his generation and
God. He lived a life sold out to God as he went about serving his
generation.
Then something
happened; as expected for everybody as the dawn of a new day, death came
calling on his door and oh... this anointed and great man of God died. Yes he
died. Death is the end of discussion from everyone. Naked I have come and naked will I
go just as Job said. All the
wealth, the property, the gold, the cars, the gifts and talents all do not
belong to a dead man after all, there is a transference. Then Elisha died. And
so it happened that a fracas had happened in the town, some people were on their
way to bury a young man who had also died.
2nd Kings 13: 20
Then Elisha died,
and they buried him. And the raiding bands from Moab invaded the land
in the spring of the year. 21So it was, as they were burying a man,
that suddenly they spied a band of raiders; and they put the man
in the tomb of Elisha; and when the man was let down and touched the bones of
Elisha, he revived and stood on his feet..
A dead person had
been erroneously (divinely orchestrated I would say) thrown in to the tomb of
the dead Elisha and only God knows for how many days he was dead. He had
finished his course and was gone but something amazing happened. Virtue was
still in that body, power was still flowing, the gifts and talents were still
speaking. Oh how much I now agree that people are buried with so much of their
talents and gifts underutilized. Elisha served and there were yet
more of power flowing through his dead body that he saved a life from residue
anointing. The guy would have been buried and gone for life but someone’s
residue anointing raised him from death. Now let me ask a question I
have been pondering on... Was Elisha’s tomb not sealed or covered? It
apparently was not because the man’s body actually touched his bones. I guess
God allowed it so we may learn a lesson from it.
Friends, many have
gone to the grave with many books unwritten, many songs unsung. Talents worth
trillions of dollars and in unquantifiable sums lie fallow in the ground and unfortunately they are lost
forever. I hear of bandits going to the cemetery to steal jewellery worn on
dead people. Alas, they are stealing the wrong things. The most important
things in there can never be retrieved. Let’s glean from this. The world has
too many needs for us to keep enriching graveyards and cemetery. In the world
are hurting people from generation to generation. Why don’t we use these
gifting to bring relief to our world rather than empowering the graveyards, a
place where no one has need of them? We brought nothing and we would go with
nothing .That tells me we have nothing of our own. Oh yes, the cars, houses,
jewelleries, children are all on loan for us to be a blessing to our
generation. They shall be returned and the cycle will continue.
Have you ever
wondered where your first car is? The present car you are riding won’t be with
you forever, it will change hands. Title deeds of houses and properties change
from year to year, decade to decade and century to century. Your children will
grow up and get married. You have built the biggest of houses, bravo; you won’t
sleep in two places at a time. How many children would want to live with their
parents when they get married and start having children? Everyone is learning
to be uninhibited and acquire their own wealth. They travel far away to
make something good out of their lives as well. No one can lay permanent claim
to ANYTHING in this world. Not at all! If that is the case then, we
cannot afford to live carelessly. We must make use of what He has put inside of
us. Matthew 25: 14 says “For the kingdom
of heaven is like a man traveling to a far country, who called
his own servants and delivered his goods to them. 15And to one he
gave five talents, to another two, and to another one, to each according
to his own ability; and immediately he went on a journey.
None is devoid of
gifts and talents. God is not unjust. He’s too perfect and He works out the
affairs of every individual with such great dexterity. He has orchestrated even
before your existence your continent, race, country, your parents and all.
David in Psalm 139 verse 13-16 says:
Oh yes, you shaped
me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother's womb. I thank you, High
God—you're breath taking! Body and soul, I am marvellously made! I worship in
adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in
my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from
nothing into something. Like an open book, you watched me grow from conception
to birth; all the stages of my life were spread out before you, the days of my
life all prepared before I'd even lived one day.
Acknowledge
what He has given to you and trade with it no matter how small you think it is.
Write that poem,publish that book, sing that song, reach out to that person. . He won’t
listen to your excuses on the day of reckoning. Just keep giving and pouring
out to your generation. That oil will not stop flowing until you stop giving.
When we all give
our best, we make the world a better place and eternity will be grateful we
ever existed…..selah
The Pen….
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