A new Nigeria is emerging and that new Nigeria is inside every of her citizens – a Nigeria that is corrupt-free and built on righteousness. God is set to do a new thing in Nigeria and we have to brace ourselves for the best that is to come in Nigeria. The bible in Isaiah 43:18 says “forget the past. Behold I will do a new thing, and it shall spring forth…” I believe that this is the prophecy about Nigeria – the Word of God for Nigeria at this time.

In order for the Nigeria of our dreams to come forth, everybody will be required to sacrifice something or the other and place ourselves under strict discipline. In other words, we need to accept responsibility for our lives and what becomes of Nigeria. Christians particularly need to realize that the destiny of nay nation is determined by the Church; it is definitely not determined by the day this means that the word of God is the only thing that can definitely alter for the best the destiny of any nation. The Word of God confirms this point in its prophecy concerning the birth of Jesus: “unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given and the government shall be upon His shoulders….”
The phrase ‘the government shall be upon His shoulders implies that, since the shoulders is the beginning of the body; and the church is the body of Christ, the government of the world depends solely on the Church. So if any good thing is to happen in the world or particularly in Nigeria, it must originate from the Church.

In Isaiah’s prophecy again, the mention was made of ‘a child’ being born and ‘a son’ being given. This is a lesson for our present national leaders and anyone else who is thinking of filling one leadership position or the other: it takes a process for the ‘child’ to become a ‘son’ – that is grow and mature enough to lead anybody but himself. In Ecclesiastes 10, the Bible also says:

“Woe unto nation if her king is a child who feasts in the morning…” (Paraphrased) This means our leaders must be selfless enough to delay the gratification in satisfying their life-time desire of owning the world and retiring super rich in the country.

For the vision of the New Nigeria to be attainable for all the citizens of the nation, everyone needs strength of mind, character and body. We must be prepared to do all it requires to bring the New Nigeria to fruition. Also new must never forget God, who is our source. Without Him, we are nothing.

One of the major reasons for the problems being faced in Nigeria is greed and lack of faith in people. Bad leadership is another problem that has plagued Nigeria for scores of years in the past. People just assume leadership positions anyhow without knowing what it takes to lead a nation. They do not understand that anyone who seeks to lead a nation must be a people-person – communicating continually with the people.

1 kings 12: 1-11 tell a profound story of the significance of communicating effectively with the people a person leads or intends to lead. A leader is more or less a servant who must be able to ensure the lasting loyalty of the people he works with by giving himself to them as Jesus did.

There are some salient points that as Nigerians we need to consider in order to keep the vision of the New Nigeria fresh in our minds:

• We need to note that it is not necessary for anyone to steal what does not belong to him to become wealthy.

• Governance is not for “chop-I-chop” but it is for service to humanity.

• Vision is needed for the New Nigeria or our dreams to emerge. In our own little environment, what kind of change can I make happen? I should not just ask: “what can my country do for me” (its proof of a slavery mentality); I should ask: “what can I do for my country”.

• Discipline is also needed for our new Nigeria to come forth. Galatians 4:1-2, and Ecclesiastes 10:16, 17 advise that we grow up and stop behaving like children. We need to note that the conditions obtainable in family units determine, to a large extent what happens in the nation as a whole.

The Word of God for Nigeria at this time must be embraced and confessed continually by all her patriotic citizens. He says, “I will cause the impossible to happen in Nigeria”! And all our eyes shall see it.

Rev’d Tunde Afe is Senior Pastor of the House of Faith Christian Centre, Ado-Ekiti, Nigeria; Contact Rev'd Afe through: babatundeafe@yahoo.com

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