THIS DARKNESS

I was talking with a “mentor” some time ago about the often tricky and selfish human nature and how it affects our work life. I was surprised when he said, “Yeah, that’s the way working environment should be: you have to pull the other person down so you can get up! Before you can survive in a working environment you must be competitive!”

I agree with him about being competitive (absolutely). After all, out of about 1.5 million sperm cells that our fathers produced during sexual intercourse, those of us who made it to be alive are the ones who were competitive enough to beat the others. But what I don’t understand is the pulling down of others to get up. Hey! It’s good to use your head, but would you neglect having a good heart because you aim for the top? Didn’t African morals tell us to celebrate others who are already up so that we ourselves will be celebrated when we get up? What happened to the teachings of our fore-fathers about posterity, integrity, and congeniality? Would you go through life claiming to be a saint while you are the devil and still find fulfillment at the end of your days? I bet nemesis always finds its way to every soul’s doorstep somehow.

The sad part of it is that of the entire places I have worked, those who do this thing most are those we refer to as children of God. Even the person that gave me this advice is said to be one! Chai! Religion is so changed that people don’t think about heaven as the first goal anymore (Mathew 6:33), they only think about success; and God help you if you are threading the path they ought to take to reach that success.

Okay, maybe I should pause a bit here and tell you what this man (and people like him) thinks about people who use good heart at work: “You’re too easy and it’s rare for such minds to succeed!”

They see you as too emotional for the work environment; rather they are the ones who are too dark-hearted to see they are wrong. Little wonder they don’t take correction when you try to enlighten them. They have become a typical example of what the Bible says, “And because iniquity shall about, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Mathew 24:12-13.

I often wonder where all the coldness/darkness in their heart comes from. Are they from God? The cruelty and trickery they meted on their colleagues; are these from God too? I don’t understand if they are children of God or Satan anymore because they seem to claim spirituality but deny the greatest commandment; “Love your neighbor as yourself…” (Mathew 22:39) The darkness has stolen into their heart so much that they have embraced it as the right thing to do. I would not doubt it that if they have their way they would preach in their churches that people go to their places of work like they are going to war and be kitted in military armoury!

Have you ever come across those who think they are better than you because they use their head and ignore their heart? (Yeah, you’ll understand what I’m talking about.) Some even get to know those who work with them don’t like their immorality, but they’ll say “As long as I’m getting a good result in what I do-I don’t care.” Yet much as using our head is important, would you agree with them that they should ignore their heart? Scientists believe that the heart is the first organ to show when a baby is developing in the womb, and it even starts beating before the brain is ever formed. Now if that is true, don’t you think God wants us to know the heart is more important than the head?

Classical scientists and philosophers, including Aristotle, believed that the heart was the seat of thought, reason or emotion, often rejecting the brain's value and instead viewing it as the seat of the soul. If the heart could be that powerful and have the potential of giving you a splendid life, why on earth would you want to opt for a “dark heart” plus a cunning head, simply because in the times we are the cunning heads are the ones who succeed mostly? What about life after death? What about what the Bible says, “Who shall ascend unto the hill of the LORD? Or who shall stand in His holy place? He that hath clean hands and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.” Psalm 24:3-4.

Don’t mind them! Having a good heart, not only at work, but in every sphere of life is important to achieving success, both on earth and the life after. Check out Proverbs 22: 1, “A good name is more desirable than great wealth. Respect is better than silver or gold.”(God’s Word Translation) If you fail to live life with a good heart, what would you fall back on when all else is gone?

To all those who want to do right like me, please take note: it doesn’t matter how “not straight” the way is, even if you face the toughest difficulty in this world, remember you are master of your faith (Quote from invincible man-paraphrased). You determine what happen to you. Even if the world/people around you see you as nothing, remember it’s not what they call you that matters but what you call yourself. You may not be where you desire to be yet, but remember “Faith” calls those things that are not as though they were… Romans 4:17.