Written by: Apostle Zaccheus Bamgbaiye
Just recently, an artiste fashioned a belief into one of his songs and emphatically said "it is lonely at the top", a song which has gained wide acceptance from majority of the Nigerian youths. Although this particular line of the song sounds harmless and entertaining but it can be dangerously damaging to the mindset of any youth than they could ever imagine.
Nigerian renowned Music Artist, Asake whose song "Lonely at the top " is rated by TopCharts as one of the best and most rated song ever. (Photo Credit: TopCharts)
If you would ask me for my opinion about the line,"lonely at the top" I would say, it is never lonely at the top. Infact, it is a statement of ignorance for a believer to also accept such claim, because fulfilment and joy awaits a man who chooses to live a life of faith and impacts even as he climbs the success ladders to the top.
God in a bid to provide a support system to Godly youths during the lowest point of their lives spoke through His messenger, Prophet Isaiah in the book of Isaiah 40:29-31:
"He (God) gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.
Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men and fall;stumble
but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint".
The above biblical verses clearly present the system of hope for a youth who is dependent on God, and that a space awaits him at the top provided he won't get tired of "waiting upon the Lord".
The youths must be guided to understand that God won't equip a youth with strength and also grant him the support needed to get to the top if the top would be empty and lonely for him eventually.God doesn't lead a man to an empty destination, never! His(God) presence would definitely go with him.
I say this emphatically, “it is never lonely at the top!”
However, the soul of a man that eventually finds himself at the top could be lonely for these two reasons:
- SELFISH AMBITION: The top becomes lonely for those who in their quest to rising to the top, crushed other potential achievers to nothing while using them as ladders to get to the top.
Take for consideration, the exploit of a believer is never determined by how far his efforts alone can take him but rather how far his faith and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ can take him.
To such believer, the top is never lonely since the journey to the top was sponsored by faith and grace; and these two key sponsors are major determinants for every believer who desires to attain a great feat in life.
Selfish ambition could deprive a man of grace and faith thereby making him run after his goal at all cost without minding the consequences.
At the end, such man would be lonely even if he finally gets to the top, because the spirit of God must have departed from him.
- A SOUL SOLD OUT TO THE DEVIL: Most times when people feel lonely at the top, it is their soul that has a vacuum or feel lost.
The Bible in Mark 8:36&37 says:
"For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?
Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?"
When the soul is no longer in sync with God’s purpose, it becomes lonely and devastated.
Some people sell out their souls outrightly just to attain a particular height. When this happens, such a man even after achieving what is termed success by everyone around him, his soul would be lost and hence a feeling of loneliness at the top would set in.
It is noteworthy then to re-emphasise that people, especially the youths are fascinated by popular saying(s) and generally accepted quotes; which they allow sink into their psyche. Unfortunately, most of these lyrics and expressions which find their place deep into the hearts generally are not scriptural and healthy for consumption for Christains.
One of these popular sayings is an expression that goes thus: "If you can't beat them, join them"…This expression been around for a long time and has been misinterpreted by the young ones.
That you are not standing out in what you are doing rightly at the moment, does not mean you should abandon it and embrace what your peers are doing wrongly even though they have become so strong and influential in it. The Bible in Matthew chapter 8 verse 13&14 admonishes us that the way of destruction is broad. But many navigates that broad expressway because it seems comfortable, though, the end thereof is a dead end and total destruction while the narrow which has few peole tredding it is the path of life and salvation.
You and I must be aware that most of these worldly expressions, quotes or idioms were written by non-believers and atheists(people who do not believe in the existence of a Supreme being) and as such they negatively influenced the mind of people, especially, the young ones who naive, and spiritually inexperienced.
This is one of the reasons the Holy Bible must be the standard of believers. If a quote or any expression doesn't agree with the truth of God's word, I strongly advise that such must be shunned and shot out of our hearts and our world.
Movies, cartoons, comics, porn videos to mention a few have also been of major concern lately as millions of people around the globe now have access to them through several platforms.The internet has provided easy access to these contents and the damage they have caused young ones over time can be traced to their lifestyle.
Conclusively, you would agree with me that there are many songs, quotes and visuals out there that are sourced to the Kingdom of darkness and they must be carefully assessed and censored in order to avoid irreversible damage to the mindset of people, especially the young Christains.
Dear reader, if you must be a part of God's business on earth, I urge you to live and lead a righteous life and be discerning with what you read, listen to or watch. This way, we can all be sure to live and lead a life that is sold out to God's kingdom purpose alone.
Stay blessed.