God, Man and the Void

God, Man and the Void

A poor girl looks up to heaven and prays, “Oh, that Thou wouldst take away these rags and give me a change of apparel”. God answers and miraculously provides her with a pair of new clothes. She receives it with gladness and thanks Him who so mercifully provided. Then, she looks at her feet and wonders, “Why have I not the same delicate shoes worn by the well-heeled girls?” God, in His wondrous goodness, again sends her shoes. She daintily walks into the city and as she passes by a girl she oft envied, she caught a whiff of expensive perfume. “God, will it hurt to give me just one bottle of fragrance?” He graciously provides it again. In the months that followed, she adds a horse-drawn carriage to her request, for it only befits one carefully bedecked as her. She prays for rich friends, as her circle needed to reflect the glory that God had so resplendently bestowed. She even pleads for a home in the highbrow district so as to be close to her new friends; and on and on her desires grew.

But, why does God give in a manner that soon leaves us asking for more? Why must we ask Him before He gives us everything He knows we desperately desire? Why does He make His prophets declare blessings on us, yet leaves us waiting on Him to receive them? Does He like to whet our appetite for the fun of it? Is prayer a charade to keep man inoculated from the realities of his helplessness? Are faith and hope a cocktail to render us dependent on a God we have never seen? At one point or the other, these questions cross the mind of the believer who ponders his walk of faith and the workings thereof.

At the root of every prayer of faith is a desire; at the root of every desire is some dissatisfaction and at the root of every dissatisfaction is God working to draw us closer to Himself. If man goes to bed satisfied that he has had a fulfilled day, he doesn’t wake up the following morning with the same feeling. Instead as his opening eyes greet the new day, his heart instantly fills with a desire to have another fulfilled day. They say this desire - this void we seek to fill - is the source of hope and the object of man’s life; I beg to differ. I believe instead that the Hope and Life of all men is at work to achieve a far greater purpose. Not knowing this truth is the source of disillusionment and depression for many, as life appears to them as an empty race for much of the same.

People often say that God is good, but they truly want only so much of Him; it is the good things that many want. Open any prayer book or ask any friend for his prayer list and I guarantee that what you will see are requests for the good things of life – both noble and selfish. We crave an item on our prayer list as though we will die if we don’t get it. But the moment our hands close around the desire, we move onto the next item and crave for it with the same earnestness; thus our insatiable desires grow. Could it be that God adds something to every fulfilled request of ours? I have news for you; it might shock you if you have never pondered it: Not only does God initiate desire in man, He also initiates an ‘emptiness’ with the fulfilled desires, and this in turn initiates more desires in him. It brings to mind the multitude in the wilderness who so craved flesh that they were ready to stone Moses for it. Indeed, they had their fill of bird-flesh that it was coming out of their nostrils but they had something else instead of the satisfaction they expected – a leanness which clung to their souls.

Abraham was so blessed with everything a man could wish for save an heir. God then heightened his desire by promising him a son. Consequently, Abraham faithfully served God and sought His face for eleven years but no respite was to be found for his void. He took matters into his hands and, together with Hagar, he bore Ishmael; but God had him drive out the boy. By the time his promised son came, his void had been filled that he could willingly sacrifice Isaac as proof of this. Like him, David earnestly sought kingship over Israel in response to God’s anointing over his life. He would spend years roaming the wilderness as he waited for the appointed time. When his moment fully came to be crowned king his void was already filled that he turned to God for permission to accept the position. The ambitious boy who faced Goliath had become a contented man in God’s hands.

Adam and Eve were quite the opposite, like many of us today. They had everything they could ever imagine except the one mysterious fruit in the midst of the Garden. This must have created a restless dissatisfaction within them, each time they walked past the fruit. Eden was fitted all the pleasures of life, but God added this void to make them seek what was All-Important. They didn’t. I fear that many go through life making the same mistake. God can give us Eden, but He will add a downside to it so that we can draw near to Him. How many of us will seek God at all if we didn’t some gnawing concerns that we cannot fix ourselves. And even if we will still seek Him without such concerns, God will never give us what will replace Him or the pursuit of Him. All the decades that Abraham was seeking a son (because the fruit of the womb is God’s reward) God kept repeating to Him, “I am thine exceeding Great Reward!” No wonder when Isaac came, he could easily give him up at God’s request. Like Paul, he was content whether abounding or abased.

Many of the miracles we receive and most of the prayers that are answered will have a downside because the yearning of every creature is not any creation but its Creator. Angels dwell in glory and, over the aeons, they might be bored stiff with the heavenly wonders that men marvel about. But one thing still has them in awe: God Almighty Himself, that each time they behold Him they erupt in deepest praise crying, “Holy, Holy, Holy!” They dwell in their Eden but are not discontent because they have learnt to be captured by the God who dwells in the midst of it; not the fruits therein. It doesn’t cost God a thing to provide every want on earth or to fill the void in every man, at the snap of a finger. But, I surmise that doing it in a stepwise manner allows us to realize that it is He we really need and that it is He who fills man’s deepest desire.

What then? Shall we say it is wrongful to desire good things? No, our Father delights in generously bestowing them. Shall we seek only Him and nothing else? No, but as Christ said, we must seek Him first. He didn’t say to Abraham, “I am thine only Reward”. He said, “I am thine exceeding Great Reward”. Therefore we must desire Him as such for if He gives us all we desire and we don’t give Him ourselves, He will keep sending a leanness to our souls. For our God creates vacuums so men may fill them with Him.

Naija Phobia (The fear of everything is the beginning of becoming Nigerian)

If a dollar was given for each time someone was anxious, the Forbes Billionaire list would be an all-Nigerian affair. Every activity, every encounter, every condition a Nigerian faces is greeted with the same nervous apprehension.

If a Nigerian wakes up in the morning and discovers there’s no electricity, he quickly unplugs his phones and laptop, and switches off the TV and fridge; he is afraid that overcurrent would blow up his appliances when NEPA* is restored.

If he wakes up and there’s power, he scrambles to plug his phones and laptop, and rushes to iron his clothes; he is afraid that they will take the light* at any moment.

One Life, One Shot

I have only one life to live; one lifetime to spend. I have only one shot at it; just this one chance to get it right. I won’t be coming back this way again, I am most certain. Even those who speak of reincarnation have no memories of their past lives, so I have to find a way to make the memory of this single lifetime one worth remembering. Those who have gone on before and whose memories still linger on achieved this feat in one lifetime. But while at it, they didn’t know Posterity was filling out its pages with the deeds generations coming after will know them by.

Every one – past or living – will be known for only one thing. One single deed or one single speech; one single thought or one single attitude, thus Posterity sums up our time in this place. It’s only on epitaphs and obituaries that life is summarized with a dash between two years. But, be it twenty or seventy years, Posterity summarizes all by just one single thing. These are the thoughts that quickly flash through our minds when we hear or read people’s names.

When you hear the name Winston Churchill your mind sums him up as: The guy who stood against the evil of Nazism. When you read the name Martin Luther King, you remember: The man who emancipated the African-American people. Mother Theresa’s is the kind woman and Mary Slessor’s is the one who abolished infanticide. Even wicked souls like Hitler and Nero are not left out. They are each summarized by just one thing. Your mind sees World War Two when you think the name Hitler and Fiddling while Rome burned when you hear Nero’s names.

We will be known by one thing and it will be summed up in one word or a phrase, at the most. Some will be good and some will be bad, but the worst are those who will be known by Nothing. Yes, I meant Nothing. These are people whose lives are a forgotten memory while they yet lived; each day that live is as unmemorable as the last blink. But, those to be most pitied are the ones who are into everything that they are not known for anything. They will be also be summed up by the word Nothing.

Each one will pack behind that single thing the essence of his energies and passion. It will be his sleeping dream and waking thought. And each will do something every day about the single thing as time awaits Opportunity and Posterity to come by. The destiny of a life well-spent will be to help another; to offer something it can that the other needs. The destiny of the life ill-spent will be to harm another; to take from the other what it needs. The destiny of the life not lived is to help itself; to take what it wants not caring what the other needs.

In a few decades from this day, myself and my generation will be gone and those coming after will remember us in a flash by one word or one phrase. They will remember Soyinka and think: Nobel Laureate. They will remember Omojuwa and think: Spoke truth to power. They will remember P-Square and think: Happy, danceable songs. They will remember Dangote and think: African industrial revolution. I hope when they remember you and me they won’t think: Nothing!

Oh, that thou wouldst not enlarge my coast

A quite popular prayer in Christendom is one which says, “Oh God, enlarge my coast”. The phrase is derived from the heartfelt plea of a man in the Bible, called Jabez. His birth had come with great pain for his mother and from the anguish of her soul she cursed her baby with sorrow all the days of his life. And indeed, sorrow stuck to him like feathers to the bird until the day he looked to heaven and cried, “Oh that thou wouldest bless me indeed, and enlarge my coast….” Ever since, heaven has been besieged with the same request by people who believe their situation parallels that of Jabez.

Whilst saying this prayer, the word ‘coast’ connotes different things to different people. For some it means a spouse and for others it means children; for some it refers to a promotion and for others it’s a bigger house. But the connotation I find most interesting is the one given to it by a priest. He claimed that Jabez was praying for a greater sphere of influence and a higher position of authority in his community. Then he directed his listeners to request for the same. But as the congregation lifted its voice in prayers I could only pray that God would kindly delay fulfilling their request.

It’s not that I don’t want the congregants to get wider influence by becoming permanent secretaries, council chairmen, commissioners, minsters, governors or even the president. But, I believe that our world is in the big mess it is because people’s coasts got enlarged without their hearts getting enlarged. With a wider sphere comes greater influence over the lives of other people and it should be given only to those who are sympathetic, responsible and have a generous disposition. Anytime an enlarged coast was given to one who is narrow-hearted the result has always been catastrophic; it is like giving the keys of a bull dozer to a three year old. History is littered with Abachas, Hitlers, Stalins and Idi-Amins whose deeds could have been less shocking were they confined to an obscure existence.

My country, Nigeria, has been particularly plagued with narrow-hearted men whose coasts became enlarged. Many, if not all of these leaders, are men of faith and must have said Jabez’s prayer or a similar one at one time or the other. That their wishes were granted is the reason my countrymen are suffering today. The moment they attained rulership all their puny minds could see were the perks of office and the proverbial national cake. Their ilk favours title deeds in the Hamptons over the timeless smiles they could paint on the face of the downtrodden. Their hands would rather grab the little from the poor than lift their heavy burdens and their severely limited minds are unable to conceive the common good that needs to be achieved. What they should have asked for was to be made large-hearted men and women so that when their coasts got enlarged they would diligently seek the welfare of their neighbour.

So that we don’t point the finger at leaders alone, we must talk about followers too. Just as today is simply yesterday’s choices coming home to roost, every leader today was once a follower. We love to blame our leaders for everything but can we vouch that we would be different if we became leaders tomorrow? Are we large-hearted enough to forsake our personal or pecuniary or ethnic or religious interests for the common good? I am not waiting for your answer. Instead, next Sunday, I am rushing to church to beg God not to enlarge your coast and mine. I will even ask him to shrink it if he has ever enlarged them. I will beg him to rather mercifully enlarge your heart and mine for only then will we be ready to manage an enlarged coast.

Why is God faraway?

Why is God silent? Why is he afar off? Why has he stepped back?

As a Christian these questions often crossed the mind. But as a mother lovingly watches over her baby, God is always there for His children.

Think about a growing child and how he starts to walk. With the first step he takes, everyone around screams and shouts for joy. Then he drops on his bum, for his weight is too much for his fragile joints and bones to carry. A few days later, he tries and adds more steps, laughing  at the new experience. But as he reaches for Mum, she steps further away from him. "Why?" he might wonder, "Doesn't Mum know that I am coming to her?" He drops on his bum and bursts into tears and Mum closes in and comforts him.

However, the next time he drops on his bum and starts crying on sighting Mum's feet stepping away,  she ignores his tears and asks him to come to her on his feet. He doesn't understand that this cruelty is needed so he can strengthen his feeble limbs as he dares to walk.

So is our God. When He is silent, He hasn't departed. When He doesn't answer, He hasn't abandoned you. When He steps back it is not because He is fleeing from us but because He wants us to draw near to Him and exercise our faith muscles. For if we don't, like the child who refuses to exercise his knee and ankle joints, our growth will be stunted and our faith will wither and die.

Can God trust you?

When you cheat in exams or buy exam papers because it is hard to pass without them; others understand your predicament and buy into the idea. “It is not really a sin; it is the society” you say. But can God trust you?

When you have so many mouths to feed, bills to offset, debts to repay and your take home pay is nothing to write about. You postpone paying your tithe, or put off paying that pledge. “It is not a sin, it is the economy” you say. But can God trust you?

When you come across that money on the floor or wrongful credit in your bank account; you have prayed to God to meet your needs and you are still waiting. You bend down and pick it or withdraw the one in your account because of the pressing financial need. “It is not a sin; it is a country with dysfunctional economic policies” you rationalize. But can God trust you?

Blessing Audit

Do you recall the US Airways Flight 1549 that had engine troubles due to bird strike and had to ditch into the Hudson River? Do you remember that no life was lost- 150 passengers and 5 crew members all were rescued? I was wondering what would follow if that took place in Naija on our own River Niger. I believe that we have well-experienced and brilliant pilots who can repeat that feat. (Although I am not sure if after safely ditching in the water we have watercrafts or the like to safely ferry passengers to shore). But let’s say somehow they were all miraculously saved and transported to dry land, the following are a few of what might happen.