What will you be remembered for?
When your life is over what will you be remembered for? It’s quite a sobering question.
In a previous career, I
read a book called ‘The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People’ by Dr
Stephen R. Covey. In his book, Dr Covey introduced a habit, called ‘the habit
of Beginning with the End in Mind’. The idea was a wise one. To
achieve anything, you need to know what you are aiming for. Having done that
you need to work out how to get there. What are you aiming for?
The following story is told
about Alfred Noble. Alfred Noble was a Swedish industrialist,
inventor, and armaments manufacturer. Shortly after his brother died, he was
reading a newspaper and to his horror found that instead of his brother’s
obituary his had been written. As he pondered what the journalist had written
about him, he concluded that his lasting legacy was that of developing dynamite. Alfred died
in San Remo, Italy on December 10, 1896. In his last will and testament, he
wrote that much of his fortune was to be used to give prizes to those
who have done their best for humanity in the field of physics, chemistry,
physiology or medicine, literature and peace. Today his name is more often
linked with the Nobel Peace Prize than with the forces of destruction.
Billy Graham, the renowned American preacher,
recently left this world for heaven. The name Billy Graham is synonymous with Christianity.
He was known for preaching from the Bible (his famous strapline was ‘the Bible
says’) and with challenging appeals to everyone (the Bible word ‘whosoever’[1] comes to mind)
to ‘repent and believe the gospel’[2] of the Lord
Jesus Christ. He will be remembered for his consistency of life and message and
for living a dignified, Godly life right to the end of his time on earth. Despite his
fame and unblemished record, he made this statement one day – ‘I am not the
holy, righteous prophet of God that many people think I am. I share with Wesley
the constant feeling of my own inadequacy and sinfulness. I am often amazed
that God can use me at all’[3].
You might find it unusual that a man like Billy
Graham could still see himself as a sinner. The fact is that the nearer a
person gets to God the more aware they become of their sinfulness and God’s
holiness. Peter, the great apostle, once said to Jesus ‘Depart from me; for I
am a sinful man’[4]. I am glad that
rather than reject those who confess they are sinners, the Lord Jesus Christ is
‘faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness[5]’.
No comments
Post a Comment