PERSONAL LESSONS FROM THE LIFE OF JONATHAN UDO EKONG

Today, September 11, 2022, we as members of The Lutheran Church of Nigeria, remember and celebrate our Patriarch; JONATHAN UDO EKONG (permit me not to add any title). That’s one thing I personally gleaned from his life; he does not cherish titles, something I have seen and admired even in the life of our present Archbishop/President. But may I be permitted to also call him Ette Jonathan because he was, and even in death, still is, a father.

I was not privileged to meet him, though I must say that according to history, he died when I was 4 years old (now you know that I’m not that young). I am not writing a history about this great man, but just digging into what I have heard and read about him, and present the personal lessons I gathered from his life. Most of what I know about this Hero of Faith, was gotten from a book written by Rev. Dr. Udo Etuk. The title of the book is: JONATHAN UDO EKONG THE LOG-BELL RINGER.

So in no well detailed or scholastic manner, I present these lessons thus:

• Sometimes you have to fight to be a man… hmm… that sounds like a line from a song by Kenny Rogers titled; “Coward of the County.” But that is true of this gentle, kindhearted Patriarch who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Sometimes we have to stand for what we believe or fall for things that would destroy us.
• No matter our culture, we must place God above it because, He created culture and so He is greater and above it. Any cultural display or practice that contradicts the word of God MUST not be mentioned among Christians. But we must be careful not to be carried away by our personal sentiments about some cultural practices, and by so doing, either embrace or do away with them unwittingly.
• Godliness with contentment is great gain. Ette Jonathan was an epitome of contentment. He loves good things, and always aspires for the best, yet he was contented.
• It pays to serve the Almighty God. We celebrate him today because he gave his all for the service of God and humanity. I pray for such grace.
• Injustice is a sin and crime against God and humanity that must not be mentioned among any leader.
• No self-made or self-appointed leader would prosper. It’s even a belief in Ibibio land. A leader must have the backings of the people he is to lead.
• Sometimes the problems we face in our society and in some organizations are not tied solely to leadership. Some followers, out of selfishness and sentiments place people in Leadership that ought not to be. So if the leader or leadership is bad, then the fault is from those who placed the leader or leadership there. Sometimes we stir the dust and also complain that we have sand in our eyes…
• If people do not have confidence in a particular leadership, one factor that should be critically looked into is accountability.
• Always check your conscience. And if we have ‘murdered’ our conscience, then we are in big trouble.
• Family is everything, but such family must make God everything. (I think I’m the first person to make this statement)

I don’t like making long blog posts. So I will stop here. Please do not forget; these are personal lessons. If you know this Great Patriarch more than I do, and you feel that I have written something that does not speak well of him, or that contradicts his personality, kindly inform me in the comment section below, and I will quickly attend to it. Also, if you agree with what I’ve written, kindly comment, and share this message. God bless us all, and HAPPY FOUNDER’S DAY to all members of the LCN.

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