Can you imagine stumbling across your own obituary in the newspaper? That’s exactly what happened to Alfred Nobel. There had recently been a death in his family and the newspaper accidentally ran his obituary instead.
Aside from being shocked by seeing his own obituary, He was ‘profoundly disappointed by what he read. It proclaimed, “The merchant of death is dead.” He had been very successful engineering and inventing things, most notably dynamite. He also owned many factories manufacturing things like canons. But he decided he did not want to be remembered for making it easier to kill people.
Shortly after that incident, Alfred Nobel established a trust that created the Nobel Prizes we know today. Because of that one decision, he changed his life’s legacy.
What do you suppose your obituary would say of your life so far? Would it say some generally nice stuff? Would it point to some basic accomplishments? Or would it reflect a life of impact that changed the lives of other people forever?
Now is the time to consider what you want your life to be all about. Do it now while you still have time to make an adjustment to your life’s story. What do you want to be remembered for, for example:
- Getting homeless people into homes?
- Rescuing girls from sex trafficking?
- Promoting peace?
- Teaching forgiveness?
- Showing people God’s love?
- Empowering the dis-empowered?
- Preventing disease?
Whatever you choose, we at Simply Great Lives hope that your obituary shows that you loved people well and that your life mattered.
Thanks to Pastor Chuck at Life Community Church for sharing Alfred Nobel’s story this morning. You can read more about Alfred Nobel on Wikipedia.
