IN THE MOMENT OF EXCITEMENT.

T

he story is told of an old poor woman by name Susuka who lived with her only son Abrefa somewhere in the Eastern region of Ghana. No one really knew where the relatives of this woman were. Her only son was a brilliant footballer and was known far and near. His presence in a team really scared their opponents. His feet on the ball were like a magnet attracting magnetic objects. He was very skillful on the field of play especially in the forward line and was a thorn in the flesh of their opponents.

He was really a “cash cow” for many of the towns folks especially his school teachers who were constantly betting on his goal scoring prowess. He scored a goal or more in every match he featured in. The sad story is; this boy never enjoyed or benefitted from the fortunes people made from him neither did his poor mother.

However luck was on his side, a team was moving from region to region in Ghana scouting for talented young footballers to participate in a tournament in the capital town of Mali (Bamako) in West Africa. Abrefa gained selection into the team that was to travel to Bamako-Mali for the tournament. The date for their departure was to be communicated to them later.

When news of Abrefa’s selection got to Susuka, she couldn’t hide her joy and excitement. The next thing anyone could hear was that Susuka was in church as she was a committed Christian and worked hard in the church Sunday after Sunday. She testified and danced energetically to the admiration of some members of the congregation and the raising of eyebrows and a feeling of jealousy among others. As if that was not enough, every member of Susuka’s neighborhood got the news of Abrefa’s selection into a team to play his football outside Ghana.

Nonetheless, the joy of Susuka and Abrefa did not last. On the day of departure, when Abrefa arrived at the designated point of departure he had the shock of his life, he was told he has been replaced by another player for arriving late.  What a sad day for Abrefa who wept bitterly and uncontrollably and did not eat for days.

After pondering over Abrefa’s incident, a couple of questions flooded my mind, but what really caught my attention was; “who do we talk to when we are excited?”, “how do we express our joy?”, “do we do it to the anger and jealousy of our neighbors or in a manner that brings joy to us and our neighbors such that there is no bitter feeling from on lookers”. This story brings to mind the fact that not everyone must hear of your good news because you do not know the heart of the one you are telling your good news.

This story also reminds me of a King in the Bible by name Hezekiah  who was so excited because God had answered his prayers that he revealed to some people sent to him by the King of Babylon all the treasures in his palace. The Prophet Isaiah later made it known to him that in the near future all his treasures and even his sons would be carried away to Babylon because he (the King) did not hold his peace but revealed to strangers the treasures in his palace.

Excitement! Excitement! I have been thinking about this word which is not only a stirring up of a happy feeling but also of anger, disgust and rebellion. How do we behave when we are excited? Do we open our mouth wide and spew out our secrets and good news regardless of where we are or who we are with? Excitement can really make one reveal all his most treasured secrets which may be keys for a successful future adventure. There is therefore the need for self control when excited if not our word in time of excitement can ensnare or trap us. Obliviously Susuka did not control her tongue when she was excited and she paid dearly by cutting short the dream of Abrefa or what looked like a better bright future for his son. Yes! She had good news but was the time right for her to over jubilate? Couldn’t she have waited for her son to finally leave the shores of the country before sounding the trumpet and making merry?

 In Psalm 39:1 the writer says “I said, I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue: I will keep my mouth with a bridle, while the wicked is before me”. A bridle is a set of straps put around a horse’s head and mouth so that the person riding or driving the horse can control it. This scripture admonishes us not to complain to people even though we have every reason to. Our complains to people would make them think our God cannot take care of us.

In a nutshell this verse is advising us control our tongue whether in a happy mood or we are bitter, because whatever we say during such moments can either go in our favor or against us.