I REMEMBER…
A LIFE LAID ON THE ALTAR OF SERVICE
“But whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ. 8 Indeed, I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ” (Phil 3:7-9 ESV).
When I remember the Late Rev S.K Beckley, I remember a life of unalloyed devotion to the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, who saved you by grace through faith. It was to Jesus that you pledge allegiance for life or death; for better for worse; whatever betides, you promised to serve Christ and follow Him wherever He leads, even if it means laying down your life. Yours was a life of selfless sacrifice to Jesus. It was this selfless sacrifice that made you abandon your flourishing job in the commerce city of Lagos, Nigeria, in order to embrace a “strange” call to be a minister of the gospel of Christ among a people in one remote village deprived of all social amenities. You laid down your life on the line to reach a people lost to Satanism and idolatry. You sacrificed the comfort of the city life, well-paid job, and leadership positions to bring the light of the gospel to a people living in gross darkness and sitting under the shadow of death. You risked the security of your health to come to Olodo village so that the joyful sound might be heard by those who all their life time have been accustomed to the music of idol worship.
In the early days of your arrival to Olodo, amidst a people of strange tongues, faces and passions; you experienced days and weeks and months of loneliness, hunger, insults, ridicule and ill-health. Yet you endured still. You persevered in the face of daunting difficulties to fulfill your ministry and make your calling an election sure. Yours indeed, was a life totally laid on the altar for the Master to use as He chooses. In order to fulfill the divine call of God, you literally trekked hundreds of kilometers in prayer walks for spiritual mapping; evangelism and visitation of the flock of Christ. You trekked from Olodo to Alagbagba, Alagbagba to Alabata, Alabata to Odeda,Odeda to Olugbo and so many others. Like a spy, you walked by faith to see and claim the lands which God would later give you as possessions. Today, Christian ministers are excited if they are able to visit with presidents of countries. They gladly take pics with presidents and publish them in their monthly magazine and on social media. There is nothing wrong with this. However, when Jesus was asked whether this great messianic ministry had arrived on earth, He replied that poor people have the gospel preached to them. It takes a higher anointing to minister to poor people.
Late Rev S.K Beckley was a man of higher anointing! To you, the glory of God was your goal. And just to see a saved man smiled makes the effort well worthwhile. To the glory of God and the praise of Jesus Christ our Saviour, before your glorious translation to immortality, in the places where it was said, “ye are not my people”, are now present many who are now being called children of the living God! In the places where the soles of your feet once trod upon as a spy sent to view the lands, there exist local assemblies of believers in Christ! Halleluiah! Yours was not a wasted life after all. The many children who have and still being brought to glory justify years of selfless sacrifice to the most worthy cause on earth.
When I remember you, I remember service to the kingdom of Christ. It was for the kingdom you lived; it was for the kingdom you labored. You spent and were spent for the service of the Kingdom. From the first day you gave your life to Jesus until your last minutes on earth, you never took leave nor abdicated your duty post. Up until the last night of your sudden, unexpected and unannounced departure, you were still serving and ministering actively in the Kingdom. Day and night; in conferences, retreats, on radio and regular church pulpits, you minister the word of life and served the body of Christ. Your willingness and readiness to serve in a remote village where modern day preachers shrink from going is a great challenge to contemporary Christian leaders who would rather choose pleasure to purpose; and a palace of the earthly kings to a place of divine assignment. And because you accepted and agreed to serve where the Lord chose to allot you a portion; God also honoured your submission and cause your voice to be heard, not just within the sphere of Olodo village, but on the mountain top of Odeda local government, Ogun State, Nigeria and even up to the United Kingdom. Your life is a reminder of the outworking of the grace of God in any willing and available vessel.
Your life speaks loudly to us today of what God can do through a man who chooses to surrender his life on the altar of Christ’s service for divine purpose. And whatever any man can point at today as achievements or exploits of faith, it is all of God without whom every man can do nothing! The scriptures says “no man can receive anything except it be given him from above.” It is God who chooses the weak and disdained things of this world to prove a point to men. In this present age when people labour for ease and worldly fame; the life of Late Samuel Kayode Beckley stands as a witness to a living sacrifice.
The tributes continues, watch out for
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the next episode…
