Alfred Nobel Read His Own Obituary- and it changed everything!

What do you think of when you hear the name…Nobel?

Most people think of the Nobel Peace Prize. Of course! The very mention of the name brings thoughts of world peace and honoring the planet’s outstanding peacemakers. Think about the profound, ongoing impact of that coveted award!

But it wasn’t always that way. Not at all. In fact, that name association wouldn’t come until later in the life of Alfred Nobel. For most of his life, he was known for something very, very different.

At the height of Alfred’s business success, his older brother died. By mistake a French newspaper printed Alfred’s obituary instead of his brother’s. In essence, the article read: “Alfred Nobel passed away yesterday. He made his millions by creating weapons of mass destruction for the annihilation of mankind.”

It was only too true. Nobel invented, manufactured, and distributed dynamite and other explosives, sending his products all over the world. He had made his money exactly as the newspaper reported.

Seeing this in print, however, was like a slap in the face for Alfred. Was that to be his legacy? Was that how history would remember him? It was a wake-up call to reassess his life and impact…and to begin building a lasting legacy quite different from the one portrayed in his premature obituary.

We know the rest of his story. He took his money, time, and skills, and spent the rest of his life investing in peace. And that’s how we remember him. Instead of recalling the death, destruction, and mayhem created by his explosives, we think about a high and lofty prize promoting peace in a troubled world.

Alfred Nobel had the opportunity to read his own obituary—while he was still alive. But that won’t happen for most of us. If we’re going to gain any kind of perspective on the impact of our lives, it will mean taking time for some thinking and assessment. Have you done that? Have you ever wondered if your life is really making a difference? Do you have a sense of destiny—that you were created to leave a positive and powerful legacy?

As young men we both had plans for our lives based on what we thought would serve us well in the future. We had no need of God, we thought, and it seemed life was very much about materialism – wealth, houses, cars, travel, fame. But when we came up against the compelling and exciting person of Jesus Christ, everything changed.

Everything.

From that moment on, we knew we could never be happy, fulfilled, or ultimately secure, living in light of such shortsighted plans. At different times and through different circumstances we presented ourselves to Christ—all we were and all we had—opening our minds to His agenda.

And we’ve never looked back.

Neither of us has ever entertained longing thoughts about what “might have been.” Not a day has gone by that we haven’t thanked Him for transforming us from the inside out, and then giving us the most meaningful work a human being could ever imagine.

We decided to write a book entitled, Glow in the Dark: Lighting the Way in a Dark World.  We chose the title for at least two reasons.

First, glow underlines God’s call for us to be His light, shining on a hill.

Second, we are to glow in the dark. We live in desperately needy times, with fingers of darkness penetrating our culture, our neighborhoods, our homes, and even ourselves. Though we are “new creatures in Christ,” we must deal with our own sin, baggage, and bad habits on a daily basis—just as we are confronted with the sin, baggage, and bad habits of others.

So we decide to focus on the Light of the World to glow through our own darkness and that of the world at large. God’s Word assures us that “those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame” (Psalm 34:5, niv).

Night falls rapidly across our culture. And yes, there’s a real battle out there, with real casualties. But it’s still possible to find our place in God’s plan for lighting the way in that darkness. It’s still possible to create a legacy of light and life beyond what you’ve ever imagined. To do so, we must acknowledge two warring kingdoms in the spiritual realm—Satan’s kingdom of darkness and bondage, and God’s kingdom of light and freedom. Darkness and light cannot co-exist. When one enters the scene, the other departs. God’s design is that the darkness would be banished as His kingdom of light expands—and His plan involves us as His front-line, light-bearing soldiers.

Today, go out and shine His light in the darkness!

By Bill Bright & Ron Jensen, Glow in the Dark

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