The Tribune

By Rev Angela C

Bosfield Palacious

SOME days it is hard to make sense of the world. It can be so confusing with so many different points of view. What do you think about death, resurrection, the after-life, life on earth, while finding the right path, way and approach.

The Book of Wisdom says: “Ungodly people have brought death on themselves by the things they have said and done…Wicked people are wrong when they say to themselves, “Our life is short, and full of sorrow, and when its end comes there is no escape. No one has ever known to come back from the world of the dead” (1:16-2:1 TEV). We know otherwise.

Jesus Christ taught his disciples: “The Son of Man is to be betrayed into human hands, and they will kill him, and three days after being killed, he will rise again” (Mark 9: 31 TEV). This is the foundation of our belief. Jesus Christ has come back from the dead, and as a result we have an after-life to live for all eternity.

When we do not allow God to lead and guide us, there is a loss of direction: “Where there is jealousy and selfishness, there is also disorder and every kind of evil.”

When we accept Jesus as Saviour and follow Him as Lord there are qualities ready to develop in us: “But the wisdom from above is pure first of all; it is also peaceful, gentle, and friendly; it is full of compassion and produces a harvest of good deeds; it is free from prejudice and hypocrisy. And goodness is the harvest that is produced from the seeds the peacemakers plant in peace” (James 316-18TEV).

In the words of Dr Kortright Davis, there is a face that portrays Christ quite clearly. He does not mean facial features such as skin tone or hair colour. He means inner traits that reflect our relationship with Christ:

1. The face of decency (high moral standards)

2. The face of transparency (no pretence, hypocrisy or mask)

3. The face of truthfulness (honest and trustworthy)

4. The face of loyalty (to God, church, family, and self)

5. The face of integrity (consistent good character)

6. The face of justice (doing right by others)

7. The face of compassion (caring, concern)

When you look in the mirror is the face that looks back at you the face of Jesus? If yes, seek to do even better. If no, then pray for a change of heart, mind and spirit.

As we look around our nation, we can see that we are struggling in the area of facing the future with these characteristics as our new national norm. We were known for some of these in the past, but there was much that was not right even then. James says: “Where do all the fights and quarrels among you come from? They come from your desires for pleasure, which are constantly fighting within you. You want things, but you cannot have them so you are ready to kill; you strongly desire things, but you cannot get them, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have what you want because you do not ask god for it. And when you ask, you do not receive it, because your motives are bad; you ask for things to use for your own pleasures” (James 4:1-3 TEV).

Let us decide that we owe it to the next generation to “get it right.” We owe it to ourselves to be our best and to bring out the best in our own generation. We also need to be a credible witness and not disgrace the gospel. Finally, God deserves us to reflect the Divine Glory in any way that we can.