十年後，誰還會記得？10 YEARS FROM NOW, WHO WILL REMEMBER
By Robert J. Tamasy
我聽過最深刻的一句老生長談是簡單到很容易被無視的話：「名氣稍縱即逝。」試想這個狀況：一位音樂人創作出直登排行榜頂端的爆紅歌曲，卻再也寫不出第二首火紅曲子。很多年後，這位「曇花一現的傳奇」不復見於「世界名人錄」的著名人士清單中，相反的，你可能會發現他被降級為「他是誰？」了。
政治候選人努力追求高層職位，甚至是競選總統。但是，當他們輸掉選舉時，很快就會被遺忘。我們有些人甚至會忘記他們曾經競選過。
派翠克·莫利(Patrick Morley) 是《鏡中人》(The Man in the Mirror) 等發人深省書籍的作者和演講者，他曾寫道：「今天早上，我想要回憶一位坦帕市（美國佛羅里達州）非常成功的商人兼著名慈善家的名字，他曾經擁有坦帕灣海盜隊（職業橄欖球隊）。他的名字經常出現在新聞中。他的名氣遠比你我一生所積累的都大，但在我最後一次聽到他的名字十年之後，我卻怎麼也想不起來了。很多人也像他一樣。」從出名人士沒落到無名小卒的路途可能極其短促。
莫利之後提出了一個問題：「你逝世十年後，誰會記住你的名字？」想想那些曾經聲名大噪、有口皆碑的人，他們的名字曾經掛在所有人的嘴上，之後卻還是被遺忘。這不是一個值得深思的問題嗎？
關鍵的重點不在於如何能維持長久的名聲。相反的，我們該重視如何調整自己的優先次序，以至於當我們的一生結束時，我們生命的影響力——我們達到的成就——能夠持續影響其他人的生命。我們可以追求財富、設定崇高的商業目標、爭取認同和地位，或尋求無數個人生夢想。但是，如果我們沒有對生命中遇到的人的生命產生有意義的正面影響，最終一切都會失去意義。
想一想耶穌基督的一生。他在這個世界上正式服事的時間只有三年。但是在那段時間裡，他觸動了成千上萬條生命，更重要的是，耶穌花費許多時間教導、訓練來自不同背景的少數門徒。這些人不是當時的MBA、高層管理人員或精英公民。然而，二千年後，耶穌基督對他們生命的影響，以及之後他們帶給其他許多人的影響，卻彰顯在全世界無以計數的人身上。
使徒保羅提出了這樣的觀點：「所以，我們不喪膽。外體雖然毀壞，內心卻一天新似一天。我們這至暫至輕的苦楚，要為我們成就極重無比、永遠的榮耀。原來我們不是顧念所見的，乃是顧念所不見的；因為所見的是暫時的，所不見的是永遠的。」（哥林多後書4章16-18節）
最後我再問一次：誰會在你逝世十年後，還記得你的名字？當然，我們當中沒有任何人能像上帝的兒子耶穌基督一樣地有影響力。但是，我們可以在剩下的短暫歲月中參與他永恆、改變生命的工作。英國傳教士C.T.斯塔德(C.T. Studd)在一首詩當中說得很好：「生命只有一次，轉瞬即逝，只有為基督做的才會存留。」你在用自己的生命追求什麼能持續到永恆的事物呢？
© 2019. Robert J. TamasyIt 是企業巔峰: 給今日職場從箴言而來永恆的智慧 一書的作者。也與導師之心的作者David A. Stoddard 合著Tufting Legacies。編輯多本著作包括Mike Landry. Bob的書: 透過苦難成長。Mike Landry. Bob的網站為www.bobtamasy-readywriterink.com, 他的雙週部落格為: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com
反省與問題討論
- 每年都會有雜誌調查誰是「年度最有影響力的人」和「年度新聞人物」。如果不去搜尋，你是否還記得十年前你最喜歡的雜誌上讚譽的人是誰？
- 你認為，為什麼許多引起媒體關注的人會在短暫的出名和受歡迎之後，很快被遺忘？他們的故事在他們成就的存續性上面給了我們甚麼啟示？
- 如果現在就必須給出答案，你認為誰會在你逝世十年後還記得你的名字？為什麼？
- 你認為自己現今正在參與哪些具有永恆影響力的事？你認為我們應該根據永恆的價值來評斷自己所做的事嗎？為什麼？
備註：如果你手上有聖經並希望閱讀更多關於本篇原則的經文，請參考：
以賽亞書40章6-8節
40:6 有人聲說：你喊叫吧！有一個說：我喊叫甚麼呢？說：凡有血氣的盡都如草；他的美容都像野地的花。
40:7 草必枯乾，花必凋殘，因為耶和華的氣吹在其上；百姓誠然是草。
40:8 草必枯乾，花必凋殘，惟有我們 神的話必永遠立定。
哥林多前書7章31節
7:31用世物的，要像不用世物，因為這世界的樣子將要過去了。
提摩太後書2章10、15節
2:10所以，我為選民凡事忍耐，叫他們也可以得著那在基督耶穌裏的救恩和永遠的榮耀。
2:15你當竭力在 神面前得蒙喜悅，作無愧的工人，按著正意分解真理的道。
彼得前書5章10節
5:10 那賜諸般恩典的 神曾在基督裏召你們，得享他永遠的榮耀，等你們暫受苦難之後，必要親自成全你們，堅固你們，賜力量給你們。
約翰一書2章17節
2:17這世界和其上的情慾都要過去，惟獨遵行 神旨意的，是永遠常存。
10 YEARS FROM NOW, WHO WILL REMEMBER?
By Robert J. Tamasy
One of the most profound clichés I have ever heard is so simple it is easy to ignore: “Fame is fleeting.” Think about it: A musician records a hit tune that soars to the top of the sales charts, but hit song No. 2 never comes. Years later the “one-hit wonder” no longer appears in a “Who’s Who” listing of famous people; instead, you might find him relegated to “Who’s He?”
Candidates run for a major political offices, even for President. When they lose the election, however, they are soon forgotten. Some of us will forget they ever sought public office.
Patrick Morley, speaker and author of The Man in the Mirror and other thoughtful books, referred to this some time back when he wrote, “This morning I was trying to remember the name of the enormously successful businessman and iconic philanthropist in Tampa (Florida, U.S.A.) who once owned the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (professional football team). His name was constantly in the news. He was far more well-known that you or I will ever be, yet 10 years after the last time I heard his name, I can’t remember it. And there are many more just like him.” The path from fame to obscurity can be very short.
Morley then posed the question, “Who will remember your name 10 years after you die?” When we consider all of the people who once achieved fame and acclaim, whose names for a time were on everyone’s lips, only to fade into the forgotten, isn’t that an important question to ask ourselves?
The fundamental issue is not how to achieve long-lasting notoriety. Rather, it is what our priorities should be so that when our time in this life has ended, the impact of our lives – the legacy we have established – will continue through the lives of other people. We can pursue wealth, set lofty business goals, strive for recognition and status, or pursue any number of lifetime dreams. But if we have not made a meaningful, positive impact in the lives of the people we encounter from day to day, ultimately nothing else will matter.
Consider the life of Jesus Christ. His formal ministry on earth lasted only three years. During that span He touched thousands of lives, but most significantly Jesus invested many hours in teaching and discipling a handful of men from a variety of backgrounds. These were not the MBAs, top executives or elite citizens of their day. Yet 2,000 years later, His impact in their lives – which they passed along to many others – can be seen in countless millions of people around the world.
The apostle Paul offered this perspective: “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen…what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:16-18).
So we ask the question again: Who will remember your name 10 years after you die? None of us, of course, will approach the impact of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. But we can be involved in His eternal, life-changing work during the fleeting years we have remaining.British missionary C.T. Studd said it well in a poem: “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last.” What are you pursuing with your life that will last – for eternity?
© 2019. Robert J. Tamasy has written Business at Its Best: Timeless Wisdom from Proverbs for Today’s Workplace; Tufting Legacies; coauthored with David A. Stoddard, The Heart of Mentoring, and edited numerous other books, including Advancing Through Adversity by Mike Landry. Bob’s biweekly blog is: www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com.
Reflection/Discussion Questions
- Every year magazines name “the most influential person of the year” and “newsmaker of the year”? Without checking, can you identify who was the person honored by your favorite publication 10 years ago?
- Why is it, do you think, that many people who command media attention experience brief moments of fame and popularity, and then are forgotten? What does that tell us about the enduring significance of their accomplishments?
- If you had to give an answer right now, who do you think will remember your name 10 years after you die? And why?
- What things are you presented engaged in that you think can make an impact for eternity? Do you think we should even evaluate our activities in light of eternity? Why or why not?
NOTE: If you have a Bible and would like to read more about principles it presents, consider the following passages: Isaiah 40:6-8; 1 Corinthians 7:31; 2 Timothy 2:10,15; 1 Peter 5:10; 1 John 2:17
