Repentance And Rest In Your Salvation
This is compassion month and our focus is on caring for others’ physically, emotionally, socially and spiritually. We take responsibility as a congregation to minister in different ways to those in need.
Today we take a different dimension of ministering to those that need to be restored to spiritual health and wholeness. Lack of repentance can result into dangerous emotional, spiritual and psychological challenges that can lead to ill health or loss of life. Psalm 15:1-5, 24:3-6, Isaiah 33:14-16 describe a person who has repented and has taken on a new dimension of looking at life. He or she is rested and focused on living a life that pleases God. Repentance is a proper way of ushering us in the presence of God and the above scriptures reveal some of the ethical requirements that each one of us needs to poses to access God’s presence. Walking upright or living blameless lives, speaking the truth and not taking bribes seems to be rare in our generation yet the Psalmist says that it is only those who do such things that will receive the blessing and will never be moved.
Some of the children who suffer and lack tuition have been affected by greedy individuals who have grabbed what belonged to their parents, others their parents were killed through uncertain conditions, yet others have just faced injustices of all sorts. These scriptures remind us to treat others with justice, treat foreigners as children of God and to avoid
exploiting others to our advantantage.
This month requires us to take a complete search of our lives and be
freed from any manner of fraud. Taking the example of Zacchaeus in
Luke 19:8, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold. And Jesus said to him, today salvation has come to this house….for the son of man came to seek and save the lost.” Brothers and sisters in Christ, we need to remember that when Jesus appears in our lives he demands a complete change of heart. If we can release our selves of the sin of greed, exploitation, fraud, oppression and many others that hinder the progress of the less privileged we will get rid of poverty in Uganda. God has blessed us with wealth which no other country has but because of our evil hearts we still have the dichotomy of people living below the poverty line yet others are way above the what they need to live for. It is only through the eyes of Christ that we can see the suffering world and allow transformation to happen. Repentance is a key to a health life, an open door to blessings and after all is done on earth, a peaceful rest in eternity. May God bless you.
The Very Rev. Canon Dr. Rebecca Nyegenye
PROVOST