13 Lessons From My Rooftop: Part-1

There could never have been a better day than this to justify my self-imposed retirement from the nation's active warmongering. The news from my field commander was quite gratifying. Those troublesome Ammonites were badly decimated the previous day, and their collaborators in Rabbah were receiving their own dose of the bitter pill.

Joab was doing a yeoman’s job as my military commander. I didn't make a mistake picking him as my military arrowhead. Only a week before, I was contemplating donning my military garb again and stepping into my favourite past time. But why join a battle in which you're not needed? Besides, the highly emotional admonition from the people to not do anything to quench the light of Israel was still ringing in my ears.

Therefore on this day I felt more than justified enjoying my retirement from active war. Yet there was this inexplicable unease inside of me. I could sense very strongly that my physical being and psyche were losing badly on adventure, and this was beginning to tell on my emotions. I had been snapping at people unapologetically lately. Could unaccustomed idleness be taking its toll on the nation’s most acclaimed warlord?

Indeed, the events that were to unfold in the next few months taught me some important lessons of which I share three with you right way.

Lesson number 1: Never take a break from the pursuit of success, whatever anyone says. When you do, it develops wings and flies very fast away from you, leaving you stranded as it did to me on this vantage rooftop.

It seems to me that we're in a hide-and-seek game with success. To keep it in sight, we have to be in an active state of its pursuit.

Lesson number 2: Idleness is a great tempter and destroyer. Other than being asleep, a man is at his weakest when he is idle.

Lesson number 3: Never take retirement decisions by consulting men. Consult God. He has determined our individual courses, and only He has the divine right to send us on retirement.

Ironically, before now, if there was a degree to be awarded for consulting God on important personal matters, Heaven would gladly confer on me a PhD. Up to this moment I'd never taken an important decision without first asking God. Not once. My record in this regard had become a standard for all posterity. But, strangely, by some cruel twist of fate, here I was, caught in the web of a decision taken in the throes of the people’s emotional outbursts and my own unguarded hunches.

Well, I tell my story for your learning. I've long finished my irreversible course and can now only share some of its fatal and near fatal regrets with you. If you have ears, you'd better listen to the lessons I'm now compelled to teach.

I'd never been afraid of war, conflicts, and the shedding of human blood. As a matter of fact, there was so much enemy blood on my hands God grimaced the day I suggested for me to build Him a temple. He knew my blood-stained hands would leave unwholesome marks on His holy habitation. I've since learned that the only blood God wants to see is the sacrificial blood of His Son Jesus.

"Son, your hands are too red to build my temple," He'd said to me. "You can't build my habitation with such bloody hands because it is sacred."

I left His presence thinking it is futile trying to completely read God. He had directed every of my war efforts, and given me outstanding victory each time. Now the same hands He'd used to silence Israel’s enemies were not good enough to build His temple. I'd always known God’s ways were strange, but my troubled conscience told me there was more to it than I was willing to admit.

Actually, you couldn't fault God on the gruesome colour of my hands. I killed anything that stood in my way and that of my people. With my bare hands I slaughtered a bear and a lion when they threatened my father's flock. I destroyed the Jebusites and their Ijebu gods. I perished the Perizzites. I hit the Hittites hard. I destroyed the armour of the Amorites. I poured harsh ammonia on the Ammonites. I destroyed the Philistines for philandering with strange gods and railing at my God. Everywhere I turned, my hands drew blood. I would've killed the Africans too if I'd had my way. They let the Queen of Sheba get away before my son, Solomon, could lay his sexy hands on her.

So you name them, I killed them all! I'd no compunction snuffing out life if it bore the enemy’s label. But, unknown to me, I was to commit a most abhorrent murder, and that was where God drew the line. That was when my heroic hands took the colour of blood in His sight.

The Philistines began it all when they let Goliath—their nine-foot-tall super bully—intimidate my people for more than forty days. I couldn't stomach it, especially when I saw the bravest soldiers of Israel run away. I confronted him, killed him, and cut off his head. I was greatly motivated by the king's promise to offer his daughter to anyone who could get Goliath out of the way. And I got my prize which, as it turned out, was very unfortunate, because it taught me another lesson which I must draw your ears on. That woman was to become a reproach, and a barren wife.

Lesson number 4: Never let lust be your motivation for pursuing anything.

The reason is obvious, but I got it too late. Lust is as transient as vapour. It vanishes quickly, once engaged.

(To be cont'd. Culled from my book Laughing Over Serious Matters. For other articles take this link: https://www.chrisekpekurede.com/blog)