Sometimes in 2010, I went with a few friends from University of Lagos to visit the first storey building in Nigeria located in Badagry, Lagos state Nigeria. It was quite fascinating seeing the the history of slave trade era come alive. However, what i found the most fascinating was the details around one particular slave, the late Bishop Samuel Ajayi Crowther. We were showed the room where he translated the bible from English language into Yoruba in just six months. I left that building with many questions:
- To translate a book, you must have read it over and over right?
- After multiple readings you must really understand the context of everything.
- For a book like the bible, won’t that mean reading other languages of the original text
- Let’s not even go into the limitations of technology….
How could this man translate an entire bible in six month, and I have been struggling to read it back to back for many years? That day, i saw what it means when a man’s heart burns for God alone. I promised myself, I will not be ordinary.
In the bustling world of today, it’s easy to slip into a comfortable routine of being a nominal Christian—content with the assurance of salvation but lacking the fervor and passion that characterized the early disciples. However, the Scriptures paint a vivid picture of a life called to be set apart, ablaze with the fire of God’s love and purpose. As believers, we are called not to settle for mediocrity but to consecrate ourselves wholly unto the Lord, living each day to please Him and fulfill His divine plan for our lives.
In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus issues a radical invitation to His followers, saying, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matthew 16:24, ESV). This call to self-denial and wholehearted devotion stands in stark contrast to the complacency that often pervades modern Christianity. Jesus Himself exemplified this consecrated life, dedicating His every moment to the will of the Father, even to the point of laying down His life for the redemption of humanity.
In essence, being a Christian is not merely about securing a ticket to heaven but about living a life that glorifies God and impacts the world around us. It’s time to rise above the ordinary and embrace our call to consecration, so that the fire of God can burn brightly within us, illuminating the world around us, from campuses to our workplaces; this fire will create a path for others to follow to follow Christ. We will be so sold out to Christ that when have see us, they have no further question about who Jesus is. Are you ready to stop being normal?
