By 
Thank you so much Madiba
for being a ‘Leader after God’s own heart’
I took my daughter to start school in South Africa this past July and one of the things I treasure most from that trip is my little ‘I love Mandela’ button that I got during our visit to this cute little gallery in Sandton Square. Walking into this gallery was like going on a trip down Nelson Mandela’s memory lane. I pinned my button to one of my caps and colleagues at work know which one I am talking about *smiling*.
Today as we celebrate this World Legend, I am so pleased with myself for picking up those buttons that day (yes, I took more than one. I am Nigerian after all *smiling*) because now that he is gone home to rest, it sort of represents a piece of him that I can always have with me. Like I told the lady at the airport who asked me why I had the button on my cap since I was Nigerian, Mandela belongs to all Africans. And in fact, if you do the research well, you will discover that he is my uncle *laughing*. True, I love his man! I suspect we all do.
Anyway, I was on my way back from the hospital today and was just jisting with God and asking him what I should blog about being as I had not blogged in a while. I had to chuckle to myself when I heard God say:
‘Are you kidding me? Why Mandela of course! Who or what else?
Salt :Of course, what was I thinking? All around the world, blogs will be awash with tributes, words, quotes about this legend of a man. The Salt Chronicles shall not dull at all.This is one bandwagon I will happily jump on.
PapaGod: Yes, and you know like what you said on your Facebook (Yes, I read Facebook so get over it) it is true that leaders around the world should take some time to reflect about how they are leading but again like you said, each one of my children is a leader. You just might be leading a country or a family. An organisation or a child. An office team or a spouse. A business or a housekeeper. Regardless of your station in life, I created you all, each one of you to ‘lead’ in some way or another..
Salt: *reflecting* Yes and Madiba really is a classic example of selfless leadership wasn’t he PapaGod?
PapaGod: You said it. Just like Jesus did not think of all your sins and how you had hurt him and instead, for your greater good, bore the Cross, the same way we see Mandela ‘let go’ of all he had gone through during Apartheid for the greater good of his country when he became President He could have chosen to use that opportunity to ‘pay back’ all his enemies and thrown his people into a hell worse than before.
Salt: How I wish our Nigerian leaders can be like him Lord. How I wish they would think more about their legacies and not their bellies.
PapaGod: Leave your leaders alone. Start with yourself right here in the ‘nation of your home’. What legacy will you leave them? Your children, Your mgm?
Salt: *head hanging slightly* I know what you mean but please show me your heart about this matter Papa. I want to understand because I see myself as someone who already knows this……
PapaGod: Salt, you and everybody out there are talking about my son, Mandela’s legacy. He does not even know you exist yet you feel he was a part of your life. You are proud to be African because of him. All I am asking you today is this: Live this same sort of life. Be this sort of leader and begin with ‘the world’ right next to you. The ‘world’ that calls you mommy. The ‘world’ that calls you ‘wife’. Then move on to the ‘world’ that calls you ‘sister or family or colleague’. Be a leader with a heart like Mandela. Better still, be a leader with a heart like mine.
Salt: Hmm……I am with you Lord….by your grace, I will be a ‘leader’ like Mandela to my world. I will invest more time and love in the ‘nation of my home’. I will leave a great legacy.. When I come home to meet you I shall be able to rest in peace because I would have done my duty so help me PapaGod.
PapaGod *smiling*: And I will help you because that is my will for you and all my children – That you live and lead in love even as Christ did when he lived among you.
You might wonder if I really have these my conversations with God. I can assure you I do. But rather than dwell on that, please dwell on what has been said above and join me in leaving our Nigerian leaders alone for as much time as it takes to get our own ‘leadership’ acts together. How will your spouse and kids remember you? How will your employees remember you? How will your other family members remember you? How will your ‘enemies’ remember you?
Listen to all that is being said about Mandela today. Would same be said about you when you die?
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