Read Time: 4 Minutes
January 12, 2007 in a Washington D.C metro station, a man in a T-shirt and baseball cap, stood beside a garbage can playing a violin. Crowds of passengers walked on by, with only seven people paying him any meaningful attention. In the end he raised a paltry $32 in tips. But the story doesn’t end there, it continues…
“The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!” (Acts 22:22 NIV).
I once heard of a lecturer telling a student ‘’you are not fit to live, go and commit suicide.” I don’t think the student ever followed through on the ill advice but that must have stung! So, imagine a crowd delivering a ‘not fit to live’ verdict on Paul!
As if that wasn’t enough, later on in Acts 23:2, Ananias the high priest ordered that he be struck on the mouth. In the Jewish tradition, being struck on the mouth in contexts like these is symbolic of the most degrading and worst kind of public humiliation. Also, a pre-verdict striking of a defendant was considered a breach of legal protocols. But who cares? It is the irksome Paul;, protocols unobserved. By Acts 23:10 he was caught in the middle of an uproar so violent that the commander feared he would be ripped in pieces!
Yet much later on in the same Acts 23 when the plot leaked of the 40 men who had bound themselves with an oath until they kill Paul. A threat, if effected, would spell disaster for the authorities because of Paul’s Roman citizenship. He, therefore, had to be hurriedly transferred to Governor Felix in Caesarea. Here’s the catch though, he was escorted by a “detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen.” Four hundred and seventy military personnel guarding him alone! Wow, that is what we would call a VIP today!
Yet, and yes, that was the same man, the crowd said he wasn’t fit to live just a couple of hours prior. He is now a valuable asset, a VIP, and he has been all along because he was a Roman citizen, even when he was being maltreated worse than a common dog!
Back to the violinist at the metro station story; the violinist was Joseph Bell. A world-renowned virtuoso, the violin he was playing cost a staggering $3.5 million! Just two days before, he had played the same violin and same solos to a sold-out audience, where each ticket cost over $100! Same man, different circumstances.
Situations and circumstances aren’t always an accurate barometer of worth and status. Seasons of knockdowns and even knockouts shouldn’t compound into you forgetting your worth, who you are, that you are valuable! You are God’s asset. Jesus opening sermon on the mount has one repeated reminder that the God of heaven is your Father! That He fondly called ‘your Heavenly Father.’ So, don’t ever completely evaluate your life by the opinion of others and the situation you are in. It would be an error to do that.
What made Joseph a Prime Minister didn’t suddenly leap on him in front of Pharaoh, he had it in him all along. In the pit where he thought his life may soon be over. Also, when he was being bargained upon like a piece of mere merchandise and eventually sold for 20 silver shekels. Even in Potiphar’s house, as well as when he was in the prison.
Has life or people dealt you a tough blow? Maybe even repeatedly? Are you, based on your current situation, feeling it isn’t worth it? Maybe you are even considering suicide? Please stop! Learn from Paul here! In a very short while from now, things may begin to mend that you may not even believe that you were the same person.
I leave you with five hope inspiring scriptures:
“When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed” (Psalms 126:1 NIV).
“Anyone who is among the living has hope —even a live dog is better off than a dead lion!” (Ecclesiastes 9:4 NIV).
“You will surely forget your trouble, recalling it only as waters gone by” (Job 11:16 NIV).
“The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.” (Jeremiah 31:3 NIV).
“For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” (Jeremiah 29:11 NIV).
– Ola Bosun Ajidahun
©2026 Ola Bosun Ajidahun . All Rights Reserved. New Blogs are Posted Every Saturday Afternoon 1 PM Mountain Time
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“What made Joseph a Prime Minister didn’t suddenly leap on him in front of Pharaoh, he had it in him all along.”
Salah!
Amen! Blessings!
Very powerful and motivating message! Our circumstances do not define the great plan God has over our lives. Thank you!
Thank you! Blessings!
While some said he wasn’t fit to live, a whole nation beckoned on him, come to Macedonia and help us. You have just reminded us of the truth that when a people reject you, another people are begging to have you.
Yes sir! That is God for you!