Good morning, and welcome!
While he was here, he was able to
visit with several of our members, and gave a presentation to our Wednesday evening
gathering. We also visited some of the
places in the Wichita area as well as two of our local church ministry points…our
food pantry and Carpenter Place. We
learned much from each other in our conversations, and have grown to appreciate
the work done in Jos by the school.
But, beyond that, these past three
days were a sort of meeting of two cultures.
Dr. Ikwulono is not unfamiliar with the US, having studied here for
several years. He is very familiar with
things such as pizza, barbeque, some aspects of US history, and some of the geographic
places in this nation. But it is obvious
that he loves his country and wants to see it grow and prosper.
When we think of Nigeria, we often
think of the negative…those Nigerian scams that have become the point of many stories
that we tell. Most of us are well aware
of those emails where some Nigerian so-called prince has millions of dollars he
wants to give us if we only will pay a couple of thousand dollars to have the
money transferred to our account. Scams
have become more sophisticated in recent years, forcing us to be ever vigilant
when we’re connected to the Internet. Scams
also come from many nations, including our own…not just from Nigeria.
The nation of Nigeria is much larger
and much more complicated than the scam artists who have made the nation odious
to many of us. A nation of over 218
million people, with a growth rate of over 3 percent, the population density of
the nation is over 660 per square mile.
The nation is wealthy in resources, but the government and the society
seem to be in constant turmoil. Inflation
is rampant at over 30 percent annually, and has been that way for several
years. The Nigerian naira, the currency
of the nation, is worth less than a tenth of a cent in dollars. There is no Social Security retirement system
in the country. And the average life
expectancy is about 57 years.
I say those things to help you
understand that even though we may complain about things in this nation…things
such as the rate of inflation, health care, government bureaucracy, or some
other ailment, when compared with other places in the world, we continue to see
blessing upon blessing. We know that at
least some of what we have now is not sustainable in the long run, and we
scramble to find ways to mitigate those things which are causing issues in the
environment, the economy, and in our relations with other nations of the world.
Through all of this, however, at least
for Christians should be a vision that goes beyond the Middle East situation, global
warming, or inflation. We are NOT
citizens of this world…this kingdom. Our
true citizenship is in the kingdom of heaven as we look forward to the new
heavens and the new earth and the renewal of all things.
Yes, we live in the here and now. Yes, we confront issues and problems in this
life. Yes, we search for answers and
long for relief. And yes, sometimes this
world and this life display a beauty and sense of wellness and contentment that
make us want to stay in that state from now on…but of course, troubles and
issues always seem to find their way into the mix and that beauty and sense of
well-being are soon replaced with something more sinister in nature that needs
our attention.
That old gospel song, This World Is
Not My Home, may well be appropriate here.
The first line is, “This world is not my home; I’m just a passing
through…and I can’t feel at home in this world anymore.”
As you navigate through life today,
appreciate the blessings and the beauty.
Take on the challenges. And
remember that this place is not really your home…you’re just visiting.
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