‘I Have fought the good fight, I have
finished the race, I have kept the faith’ (2 Timothy 4:7)
Introduction
God is the purpose of all
religion. We cannot hope to see Him however, until we prepare to face and deal
with issue of the sin and corruption that lies within our hearts. It was Dennis
De Haan who once said: ‘The Christian life is not a race to see who comes in
first, but an endurance run to see who finishes faithfully – remaining faithful
to the finish makes us true winners’. Let us take as a starting point in
this reflection some questions for ourselves. How do you perceive yourself? An
Asset or Liability? Blessing or Curse? Peace maker or Peace broker? Winner or
Loser? I am sure we are all by the grace of God on a winning side if we
keep faithful to the end. God still has time for us, let us thank him because
there is great joy in serving Him; Joy amid the darkest night, endure it; we
have privilege to talk to God’ so let us pray ceaselessly; In Jesus name we
shall stand firm against the devil who is a tyrant and terror to God’s people’
be a Conqueror; For even when life knocks us flat on our back, it certainly
puts us in a grand position for looking up. So, let us look up to God with
unquenchable faith and fidelity in our vocation, ministry, and apostolate.
God cares!
Because you matter, God cares!
You are running the race through God Grace; You are working harder and laboring
for the Lord; You have come under heavy attack; Your wounds and injuries are
many; You may have succumbed to temptation and fallen in battle; even so you
are faithful to the end; God defended you as you take refuge in His arms; So
continue to watch, fight and pray and renew your commitment every day;
Though your labor for Christ may sometimes seem fruitless, do not be weary in
doing good; God will intervene in all the difficulties of your vocation and ministry;
When you face insurmountable problems, do not panic, but just remember that God
acts for the one who waits for Him (Isaiah 64:4). You may change from time to
time, but God never changes; You may be weak, but your heavenly Father is all
too powerful; To get ahead, you must slow down and wait on the Lord; Have time
to pray more, to read God’s Word and to re-arrange your priorities; At every
turn of the road, count on God’s faithfulness while remembering that God’s work
done in God’s Way will never lack God’s supply.
Corruption
of our times
Hypocrisy,
dishonesty, falsehood, deceit and fraud are the rage of our day, the great
plague of our world. All around us are swindlers and fraudsters masquerading in
different forms. The prevailing atmosphere is unfortunately that of
deceptiveness, fraudulent impressiveness and the apparent false pretensions and
counterfeit appearances. In fact, the story is the same everywhere. Corruption
and dishonesty has continued to be part of everyday life in many countries.
Daily, we hear stories of managers and top politicians who embezzle and
squander the money entrusted to them and are subsequently dismissed. Accounts
of falsified documents, misuse of funds, bribery and corruption forgery and
counterfeiting, corrupt governments brought about by dishonorable politicians
and office holders. These unholy ambitions and activities which account for
many of our problems in the world leaves us completely disillusioned tormented
and unfulfilled. It seems the world has abandoned all principles of morality
and honesty. It might be helpful if we consider for a moment what corruption is
and its various for forms.
Forms of
Corruption
Corruption
which is the abuse of office for personal gain manifest in many forms:
·
Bribery
·
Diversion of public funds
·
Tax evasion
·
Selling Justice for money
·
Sales or leakage of examination papers
·
Lecturers asking for sexual favors
·
Policemen converting security check points to
collection and extortion points
·
Favoritism in contracting process
·
Over-invoicing and falsification of results
·
Immigration officers collecting money to
issue international passports
In fact,
corruption has stagnated our centers, institutions, economy and life leading to
poverty, deprivation and unemployment.
Challenges
Yet, the
hard fact is that, in the midst of this world that is often cruel, grasping,
skeptical, hostile, deceptive and materialistic, Christians are called to give
courageous public and private witness to Christ’s love, truth and
justice. we are challenged to embrace the virtues of hard work,
perseverance, honesty, integrity, honor, responsibility and accountability to
build a secure, prosperous and happy future for our land. The heart of the
matter is the matter of our hearts. Let us not die with heart failure. We urgently
need a heart transplant, where no dirt or filth shall defile us; and we
would become clean vessel in the hands of the Lord. As J. B Philips said:
‘Those who are hungry and thirsty for money, fame, sex, power, success, are
forever unsatisfied. They have the doom of perpetual thirst upon them. The more
they get the more they want. Those who thirst for goodness, however, thirst for
what they are made for – hence they are satisfied.’ (cf. Matthew 5:6). For we
are made for righteousness as we cannot do anything against the truth, but only
for the truth (2 Corinthians 13:8). It is crystal clear for us Christians that
the only way to live is the way of righteousness, always in right relationship
with God and doing the right thing. Let us ask God to evangelize our hearts and
take away all filth and impurity.
Conclusion
It is not enough to confess
Christ at in the Church and at prayer fellowships. We should resist the world
temptation bravely and resolutely. Give testimony and bear witness to the
gospel openly and fearlessly. For if we want better life and simple justice for
our people, we must continue to witness to Christ through the life of prayers
and selfless service, for the salvation of souls to the glory of God. We can
witness to Christ by making our homes, institutions, centre and organizations
places of honesty, love and understanding by standing for Christ and working
faithfully to the end.
Rev Fr Michael Adefemi Adegbola, Director Media Service Centre
Kaduna Nigeria 2013.
