PASS ON THE TORCH

Sometime ago, I walked up to a lady who is very skillful in interior decoration to share a pain in my heart with her. Due to the nature of her job, she normally helps to beautify the church and make the altar so inviting and tasteful. She does the decoration so neatly and without any noise that I really appreciate her work most of the time. In actual fact, you may just come to church during the week and see a well-decorated altar and by the time you are in church for Sunday service there is a new look, which is very inviting. She normally does her work quietly at night.

Despite all the above, I found out that the lady has not really taught anyone this skill which she displayed without any hindrance. That means anytime she leaves the church for any good reason, that position will be vacant. That means she has not passed on the torch.

To pass on the torch means to teach others some unique things that we know so that whether we are around or not, others will be able to continue the good work. In 2 Timothy 2:2 Paul said' "You have heard me teach many things that have been confirmed by many reliable witnesses. Teach these great truths to trustworthy people who are able to pass them on to others." (NLT) The torch has to pass from one person to the other so that the light will continue to burn because once the light goes off, darkness comes in and one cannot really do anything tangible in the dark. 

Apostle Paul knew that if others were not groomed in the faith and the doctrines, there is a tendency that the fire may die without being passed on to another generation. What would we have met if others had not passed on the torch by sacrificing their lives and imparting what they had learnt to others? What faith would we be professing now? If you have the torch of salvation in your hand, please pass it on. That is, tell others about your salvation and what God is doing in your life so that generations unborn may sing that this God is our God.

I don't know if this is peculiar to Nigerians or to the human race as a whole. But what I have seen is that some people don't like passing unto others what they have learnt. I am not sure those people ever gave a thought to how they got what they have at hand.

Some years ago, I had cause to work with a lady who was a computer operator. Being a novice and fresh from the higher institution, I walked up to her to teach me how to manipulate this machine. When I walked up to her, and asked her to teach me how to operate the system, she replied sharply by saying, she paid some amount of money before she was taught how to operate the computer and so anyone who wants to learn how to do the same, should go and enroll in a computer school and obtain this knowledge. God of mercy! When I heard this statement, I was not only cold, I felt like a fish taken out of water. That lady refused to pass on the torch and she did it without any regret. Was she selfish? That is left for you to decide.

Anybody who is selfish or self-centered can never pass on the torch. Why? The selfish interest will stand as a militating factor. Anyone who is selfish will never share what he or she has with others and so the person dies one day with all his or her talent. I tell you that fellow is not fruitful.

Unnecessary fears may not allow some people to pass on the torch. An example is some people who are good at a particular subject but they will not teach others because they have this fear that once they teach others they will lose their proficiency. But that is a lie of the devil. In fact, I believe that the more you impart knowledge to others, the more skillful you become. You simply become an authority in that particular field. That's all.

I really do not know the person that coined the motto of Queen's College, Lagos, which is what we are talking about, "Pass On The Torch" but I really credit the person because he or she did a good job. The torch has to be passed on so that there will be continuity. I am not saying we should be dogmatic but there are some virtues, good programmes and knowledge that must be passed on from one generation to another.

Just take a look at those who run a relay race. They are four in number, and once an athlete is through with his race, the baton is passed on to another athlete and with that, the race is on. However, if it is just 100 metres, when an athlete falls and he/she is unable to continue, the race comes to an abrupt end for the fellow. But, if it is a relay race, even if an athlete falls and he/she is unable to get up, as long as the baton has been passed on, the race continues.

The torch must be passed on if we must enjoy and experience some wonderful things in this life. The computer is a good example. As the torch is being passed on from one generation to the other, each generation improves on it. For example, we now have laptops and palm tops. You never can tell, we may have finger tops in some years to come. Please pass on the torch because your talent will not be useful in the grave.

·        If your torch is too precious to be passed on, then you may die without leaving any legacy.

This is the 10th chapter of, YOUNG AND CONFIDENT, IMPACT 001. Watch out for Impact 002.