by Kola Oyeneyin
I’ve come to understand that after the darkest hour of the night is day break; and that there is a degree of evil that needs to exist for good to define its relevance.
Friends, the last few days have been very tough for me emotionally as a Nigerian, following the brutal murder of the four UNIPORT students. It was another anti-climax for me, following the Mubi killings. For those that follow me on Twitter or are friends with me on Facebook, you know I’ve ranted. I got upset, tired and almost frustrated.
‘Anarchy’ was the only word that seemed to perfectly describe our current state, and redemption seemed far away from us. I wondered if God was still interested in the affairs of Nigeria, and if heaven could still hear us. I wondered if we had gotten to that point of no return or if our sins had now become completely unforgivable. I quickly ran back to study what one could term as the ‘Beginning of the end of Sodom and Gomorrah’, and thought maybe we were the new Babylon; set up to self-destruct.
However, in the midst of this predicament, cynicism, pain, anger, and negative emotions came a strange feeling. It felt like the way I always seem to feel as I somehow sum up the courage to keep going and keep doing my bit, but slightly different this time. I woke up with a renewed hope! I call this My Faith. And that’s what I’d like to share with you.
You see, I’ve come to understand that after the darkest hour of the night is day break; and that there is a degree of evil that needs to exist for good to define its relevance. A level of decadency needs to be present for excellence to have a meaning; there is a degree of injustice that must thrive for justice to continue to have its place. People, foolishness must sometimes be at its peak for wisdom to retain its value. Light can almost never be appreciated if there is no gross darkness. And folks, what is righteousness if iniquity does not abound? You see the world does not understand “good”, at their best they define decency and morality, a speaker once said. Good is dead but we know that death is not final.
So what must we do in times like this? The scripture is very clear about the times that we live in and the word of God would be false if we were not experiencing life as we live it now. Friends, listen to this simple counsel; this is the time for the genius in you and I to come out and express itself. This is when the Spirit of God should begin to inspire us, to inspire others towards one purpose, solution!
It is in times like this that our light must begin to shine as the prophet declares Isaiah 60. It is when we actually should begin to see that we were created for such a time as this like Queen Esther in the Bible. The feeling must be that there is no better time to be born in Nigeria than now, and there is no greater generation to belong to than this. Those that are left with any jot of morality should begin to put it to use, and those who can still feel, begin to feel for others. We have been empowered to empower, built to build, supported to support and assisted to assist. We have been raised up to uproot, destroy and plant:. This is our mandate, now is the time.
I call on all writers to sharpen their pens and begin to write. Artistes, begin to sing songs that can move a generation. Let poets begin to compose words that will resonate down history and painters begin to paint your masterpiece. Those with political will, position yourselves and those with a voice for social justice and equality for all, begin to join or float platforms that will amplify that cry. Enough of empty talk and pointless conversations, our gatherings must be strategic and our strategies must deliver. In the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. “Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can’t ride you unless your back is bent.”
This change that we crave, that you talk about daily and the one you pray for every time there is a tragedy in Nigeria, is not an apple that falls when it is ripe, you have to make it fall!!!
That, friends, is ‘Nigeria, my Faith’!
Nigeria, my fear! As much as my faith tells me there is so much we can do and that if we begin now, we can still deliver the future, I have only one fear and it is the fear of our inaction. I fear that we might be running out of time, faster than we know it. I fear that if we delay at this darkest hour, the darkness will be prolonged; that injustice will prevail if we relent and anarchy will emerge, if we permit!
I have faith in what we can do but I am fearful because of what we do not do!
God bless Nigeria!
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Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija.
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