COMMENTARY

Nigeria & the valley of the shadow of death  
By Odimegwu Onwumere

There are a lot of works to do. Some people have found themselves in avoidable circumstances. They no longer care for the welfare of their culture and humanity. They no longer believe that culture and humanity relate to community, but individual.

They see their people as ill; they are the only people who are healthy. They see the financially poor as living in the past, while the rich are living in the present. But we should not be selfish with our individual ideas. We must respect the laws of the sages. We must encourage any person positively we feel we can help to move forward. The work can be done when we refuse to see each other as a competitor in the world there are a lot of opportunities that do not warrant competitiveness.

We will never flourish as a country while it is full of friction. We must apply some form of correctness in our democracy, where politics will be seen as contest, and not controversy. The music of politicians should hence be harmony, accountability, equity, transparency, love, rule of law, good governance, and everything good. Albeit, without such quarrels as we are facing in this country, there will never be this tremendous eagerness being expressed by the powers that be to making sure that the country did not hang-up. Therefore, it is time all the skirmishes of bombings and gunning stopped.

  

Some of us who are rich are suffering because of our attitude while some of us who are poor are enjoying because of our attitude, and vis-à-vis. Some of us are where we are today because our thoughts have brought us there, but we have to besiege each other to grow to be true. Let us go naturally with life instead of walking philosophical that causes us a lot brewing into anger, revenge, guilt, bitterness and shame. Let us always be happy; this helps us to see the happiness in other people.

Repentance, from the Christian perspective, should not be about going back to Jesus or talking Church, but living Christ. You can't be a Christian/human being, whereas arrogance, anger, intolerance, unforgiving heart, ostracism, disobedience, avoiding your offender wife/husband/friend etc still characterize your life.

There are non-Christians whose hearts are meekly, tolerance, accommodating etc. Christianity is not about reading the LAWS, but practicing the LAWS, which should be per second, not per Sunday or on Holy Days. Education is also/even dangerous when combined with the practice of the age-long laws, because there are Christians, who are selective in what they practice about Jesus, when any of the Bible Laws affect their ego and judgement, because they feel that they are educated and know Human Rights.

But the laws of the sages are different from Human Rights. And when you remind them of this, because they have itchy ears, they hate you and call you names. The essence of being a Born Again (in the Christian cosmology) shouldn't be about giving your life to Christ and merely professing Him as your Lord and personal saviour, but living your life for Christ and allowing His humanistic laws take eminence in your life.

Being one for Christ requires humility and perseverance, because life on its own is not meant to be rosy all through. And our forbears observed and practiced these natural laws to their fullest. Some people who know these natural laws are potential Christ.

Christ faced difficulties that come with living in the world and He never waned. If your business, income, health, children, friendship, marriage, relationship etc are facing challenges, do not wane. There will always be a 'valley of the shadow of death' in the world to climb. When you see this, do not run. If you run while on this VALLEY, you know Christ not, but only talk about Him. Alas! The later is the fate of many.

A fool will do everything to flatter himself or herself. Some proud and arrogant people do not know that life is patience. Do you have an open mind and a compassionate heart towards others? Having university degrees or talking religion is not wisdom. When we do not forgive, we are in prison. We don’t have freedom. There is no life in the world without forgiveness. When we think that with our wealth there is no need to respect those we are supposed to respect, what happens if we do not have the wealth again? Humility is the first step to knowing God. The world must have hierarchy. A world without leadership is anarchy.

Let our emotions not take over our reason. Many have gone. Let tears flow like the Mississippi for those whose bell has tolled. May we be protected from bombs and bullets and curses of many. May we not relent in our efforts to building a conscientious country and world.

We must revere nature with fear and trembling. Let our comfort be tortured for peace to reign. We must avoid any form of disasters for mankind. No matter all the trials of this globe, be rest assured that we must overcome because humankind did overcome slavery, World Wars, daylight colonialism and all other ancient mathematically mayhem. We must overcome our emotions to grasp with our reasoning hub. We must overcome!

Odimegwu Onwumere, a Media Consultant, writes from Rivers State.