Metro
There’s spiritual reward for every good gift, cleric urges Nigerians
Nigerians, irrespective of status in the society, have been urged to have the spirit of giving generously and without conditions, because “there is always a spiritual return for every good gift.”
Delivering a sermon at the 10th year memorial thanksgiving service for late Ezinne Lolo Jesdie Nwabaraku Nwachukwu yesterday at St. James Anglican Church, Asokoro, Abuja, a Lay-reader of the church, Mrs. Felicia Ike said that was the only way to make heaven.
Speaking on the topic, “The grace of giving cheerfully and proportionately”, she said the essence of giving was to express love and care to one another.
“Like the apostles of old did by sharing willingly and freely with one another by solving the problems and challenges of others, I urge you all to emulate the apostles by being your brothers’ keepers,” she added.
The cleric, while referring to St. Paul in the Bible who had concern for others, said “because God gave first, we are expected to give but no matter what you give you cannot outlive God who gave His only begotten son to die on the cross for our sins.”
Mrs. Ike further stressed that God appreciates not just only quantity but quality gifts, citing the known case of Cain and Abel in the Bible as reference, adding that God accepted Abel sacrifice, but rejected that of Cain because he was not sincere in his offering to God.
“There is always a spiritual return for every good gift. You don’t need to be a multimillionaire before you give. Those things you regard as useless is beneficial to someone else. So, give it out, but give cheerfully and God will reward you bountiful,” she admonished.
Also, the Vicar of St. James Anglican Church, Abuja, Venerable Andrus Ukadjiofor, praised the late Mrs. Nwachukwu for the life she lived and those she helped.
He also thanked the family for remembering her death after 10 years and urged them to keep doing the good work she was known for. He prayed the the continued repose of her soul.
In his comments, the first son of the deceased and a veteran journalist, Dr. Obinna Nwachukwu, said the death of his mother on 4th November 2009, the same date of his birthday shattered all his birthday celebration plans.
According to him, “Although death is inevitable, that my mother died on the day she gave birth to me, still baffles me. Could it too much love? Mere coincidence, or divine?
Nwachukwu said his mother, fondly called Mama Obinna; was not born with the proverbial silver spoons, but through dint of hard work rose from obscurity to celebrity.
“This was a woman whose life was hallmark of sterling qualities, excellent record of service, credibility and patriotism to both God and humanity. Given her parents low background, she literally pulled herself up by her own boot straps in the grueling struggle of life; overcoming and surviving the sordid experiences of poverty, child mortality and civil war which called forth all the survival instincts of every human being and challenged her to play those sterling qualities which distinguish excellence from mediocrity, solid achievement from feeble performance, imaginative insight from vision-less bungling, and creativity from idealism. That was my dear mother.” Nwachukwu said.
Born in 1926 to Late Mr. & Mrs. Ukabiala Anosike of Eziala Obizi in Ezinihitte Mbaise local government of Imo State, Lolo Jessie Nwachukwu was the first among five children.
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