WHEN WE BEGIN TO CARE ABOUT OURSELVES, GOD "MAY" THEN HELP NAIJA

God help us all, thats all I can muster whenever I think about the plight of Nigeria. My motherland, I love her so, but I despair..........!

Naija, currently leaderless.............! Even when there was a functioning President, we had no law and order. Might is right, money talks, no accountability, skewed value systems, wanton displays of wealth [mainly ill-gotten] and a complete breakdown of our entire moral compass are the prevailing circumstances. There are endless debates about the oppression of the South-South geopolitical region, about the benefits or not, of dividing Nigeria. We cry out at the massive corruption and embezelment by "elected" government officials, we want change, but none of us are willing to pay the price, starting with accountability in our own lives.

I used to add my voice to the general clamour, till this morning, when something pricked my conscience. What was this great event you may well ask...., no great shakes, just some pictures taken and displayed on facebook by a young friend of mine. They depicted the plight of deprived children in some of the inner cities in Nigeria. Children living and growing amidst rubbish dumps, scrambling for food, others hawking on the roads, trying to eke out a meagre existence.

Have you ever looked into the eyes of any of these young children on the roadsides ? What do you see, what do you notice ? If as they say, "the eyes are the windows of the soul", then I have seen hopelessness in the souls of a lost generation of our children. Most of us complaining verbosely about the plight of Naija, don chop bellefull, i.e. are fairly comfortable, with roofs over our heads, food on our tables and plans for our futures. Whilst this does not excuse the flaws in our government, or the excesses of our leaders, how often do we spare a thought for those less fortunate than ourselves in the society?

We desire change for good, hold constitutional assemblies, public rallies, sing and pray about the ills in our society, moan endlessly, but do we actually put our money where our mouths are? A resounding no! How many of us support orphanages or care about the really disabled in our society? This is not the governments responsibility alone, its collectively ours, and we've failed woefully.....! Do we then really think God will hear any prayers asking for a change in our situation, when the little things in our power to change, we don't do? Do we treat our own staff and servants fairly; the househelp, driver, maiguards etc? We crave equity and justice from the government, but don't apply the same principles to those in our employ, what hypocrisy........!

With all the "wonderful" stories I hear coming out of Naija, about the growth and "flourishing" of our churches, I'm yet to hear any stories about "the numerous additions of orphanages" to the church body. I hear stories of folks buying the most expensive cars for their pastors, even private jets [that's another story.....!], but have NEVER heard about anyone donating equivalent amounts to orphanages or disabled homes. Neither does it "seem" that the pastors encourage their flock to engage in any such magnanimous giving. Its still the older orthodox churches, [Anglican, Catholic, CMS, etc] who have the monopoly on charitable activities, who appear to try to do what God desires concerning the poor [Ps 82:3-4, Pro 29:7]. I know of a few private individuals who do help as well, but they are a rare minority compared with the multitudes who throng to the churches each Sunday. 

So whilst we desire fairness and equity in government, so that we can enjoy all the resources that Naija has to offer. If we don't change our attitudes to those less fortunate than ourselves, to those who depend on us, in order to  also enjoy the good resources of Naija, we will NEVER have the change we desire, regardless of  how much  praying and fasting we may do, [Prov 21:3] regardless of how many well thought-out ideas for improvement we might have. If we don't care for the orphaned, disabled, widowed and the abject poor in our society, how can we really expect God to change what goes on in the higher echelons of society, i.e. government. If we want Gods justice to reign in Naija, we must also let His justice reign in our own lives, in the ways we deal with those in our employ, in the ways we care about the poor. As Ghandi once said "be the change you want to see in the world". I'm admonishing myself too, as I pray never again to complain about the state of Naija, till I'm doing something positive to change it for the better. I aim to become part of the solution, rather than continue the status quo. Enjoy the pictures, click on them to enlarge,  I hope they will provoke some thought and soul-searching too.   

 

P.S. I've just found out that the pictures posted originated from a non-profit organisation, sponsored by one of the "newer" churches, who go into the inner cities to reach out and help under-privileged kids, and I'm thrilled. If any of you out there, know any more such heart-warming stories please inform and share, so at least I'll no longer despair.......!

15-02-10