FOURTH DIMENSION: A need for national repentance

The story of the repentance of the city of Nineveh to the preaching of the prophet Jonah has lessons that would be helpful for the nation of Uganda. The Prophet Jonah proclaimed, “In forty days Nineveh will be destroyed.” Destroyed because of the many evil things they had become known for. They were a city of violence and treachery that they were feared in the whole region.

The people of Nineveh listened and believed that God was capable of fulfilling every threat he had proclaimed through His prophet. They proclaimed a citywide fast and dressed in sackcloth to show their repentance. Everyone - rich and poor, famous and obscure, leaders and followers- participated in showing God that they were sorry for what they had done. God saw that they had turned away from their evil lives and He changed his mind and didn’t do to them as had been promised.(Jonah 3)
The actions of the people of Nineveh have the following lessons for us to emulate. They dared to fear God and act to show their fear of God.

We had the President lead the nation in the prayer of confession and repentance to God. He dedicated the next 50 years to God so that Uganda would see better years ahead. This was a great act and has great possibilities for the nation. But this prayer needs to be accompanied by a national turning to the fear of God. The fear of God simply put means that the people live their lives with a personal consciousness of Gods demand of righteousness from their lives. And they fulfill their responsibility towards God by turning from evil deeds and acting in a humane manner. We must remember its the crimes of the people of the nation that cause the pain and disturbance in the nation.

The king of Nineveh demanded that every man- nobles and peasants- cry sincerely to God for forgiveness. Every one was required to turn from every form of violence in his hands. This is the second lesson we need to learn and apply. The way back to prosperity of the nation is a departure from violence. We need to note that violence is not limited to the riots in the city. It includes false weighing scales, moving boundary stones, selling fake goods, stealing drugs from hospitals, valuing money over life, reckless driving and riding of motor vehicles. God is touched by the pain of His people and He acts in their defence by bringing disaster upon those who contradict His will.

But when we turn from our wickedness and do what is right, God will turn and relent from His fierce anger so that we don’t perish. The prayer of the president must become the guideline to our national behaviour if we are to see the national prosperity that we long for.