WEDNESDAY 2nd SEPTEMBER 2020: INFORMATION & COMMUNICATION, TECHNOLOGIES
PRAYER GUIDE
ISAIAH 51:15-16 (NKJV)
15But I am the Lord your God,
Who divided the sea whose waves roared—
The Lord of hosts is His name.
16And I have put My words in your mouth; [Emphasis Added]
I have covered you with the shadow of My hand,
That I may plant the heavens,
Lay the foundations of the earth, [Emphasis Added]
And say to Zion, ‘You are My people.’”
JEREMIAH 1:9,10 (ESV)
Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth. And the Lord said to me,
“Behold, I have put my words in your mouth.
See, I have set you this day over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to break down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.”
EZEKIEL 37: 3-5, 7, 9, 10
And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, [Emphasis Added] O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live….
So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, [Emphasis Added] and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone…
Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, [Emphasis Added] Thus says the Lord God: Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on
these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, [Emphasis Added] and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.
MARK 11:13-14
And seeing in the distance a fig tree in leaf, he went to see if he could find anything on it. When he
came to it, he found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. And he said to it, [Emphasis Added] “May no one ever eat fruit from you again.” And his disciples heard it. [Emphasis Added]
MARK 11:22-24
And Jesus answered them, “Have faith in God. Truly, I say to you, [Emphasis Added] whoever says to this mountain, [Emphasis Added] Be taken up and thrown into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says [Emphasis Added] will come to pass, it will be done for him. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, [Emphasis Added] believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.
GUIDING TEXT FOR THE FASTING SEASON
ISAIAH 32:1-8
1Behold, a king will reign in righteousness,
And princes will rule with justice.
2A man will be as a hiding place from the wind,
And a cover from the tempest,
As rivers of water in a dry place,
As the shadow of a great rock in a weary land.
3The eyes of those who see will not be dim,
And the ears of those who hear will listen.
4Also the heart of the rash will understand knowledge,
And the tongue of the stammerers will be ready to speak plainly.
5The foolish person will no longer be called generous,
Nor the miser said to be bountiful;
6For the foolish person will speak foolishness,
And his heart will work iniquity:
To practice ungodliness,
To utter error against the Lord,
To keep the hungry unsatisfied,
And he will cause the drink of the thirsty to fail.
7Also the schemes of the schemer are evil;
He devises wicked plans
To destroy the poor with lying words,
Even when the needy speaks justice.
8But a generous man devises generous things,
And by generosity he shall stand.
Day |
Day of the Week |
Date |
Area of Focus |
WEEK THREE |
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| 15 | Wednesday | 2nd September 2020 | Labour & Employment |
| 16 | Thursday | 3rd September 2020 | Banks and Finance |
| 17 | Friday | 4th September 2020 | Domestic Revenue |
| 18 | Saturday | 5th September 2020 | Transport and Logistics |
| 19 | Sunday | 6th September 2020 | Manufacturing & Industry |
| 20 | Monday | 7th September 2020 | Entrepreneurship, Trade and Commerce |
| 21 | Tuesday | 8th September 2020 | Land Management |
WEEK FOUR |
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| 22 | Wednesday | 9th September 2020 | Water Management |
| 23 | Thursday | 10th September 2020 | Biodiversity & the Natural Environment |
| 24 | Friday | 11th September 2020 | Livestock, Fisheries and Agriculture |
| 25 | Saturday | 12th September 2020 | Energy |
| 26 | Sunday | 13th September 2020 | Minerals |
| 27 | Monday | 14th September 2020 | Tourism and Hospitality |
| 28 | Tuesday | 15th September 2020 | Housing and Construction |
WEEK FIVE |
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| 29 | Wednesday | 16th September 2020 | Entertainment and Celebration |
| 30 | Thursday | 17th September 2020 | Sports and Recreation |
| 31 | Friday | 18th September 2020 | International Cooperation |
| 32 | Saturday | 19th September 2020 | International Geopolitics |
| 33 | Sunday | 20th September 2020 | Africa, Israel and the Nations |
| 34 | Monday | 21st September 2020 | The Executive |
| 35 | Tuesday | 22nd September 2020 | Cabinet |
WEEK SIX |
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| 36 | Wednesday | 23rd September 2020 | Local Government |
| 37 | Thursday | 24th September 2020 | Public Service |
| 38 | Friday | 25th September 2020 | The Army and the Reserve Force |
| 39 | Saturday | 26th September 2020 | Border Control |
| 40 | Sunday | 27th September 2020 | Justice, Law and Order |
| 41 | Monday | 28th September 2020 | The Police and LDUs |
| 42 | Tuesday | 29th September 2020 | Prisons and Rehabilitation |
WEEK SEVEN |
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| 43 | Wednesday | 30th September 2020 | The Legislature |
| 44 | Thursday | 1st October 2020 | Political Organizations |
| 45 | Friday | 2nd October 2020 | The Electoral Commission |
| 46 | Saturday | 3rd October 2020 | The Electorate |
| 47 | Sunday | 4th October 2020 | The 2021 Elections |
| 48 | Monday | 5th October 2020 | Post- Election to Swearing-in |
| 49 | Tuesday | 6th October 2020 | Marketplace Restoration |
CONCLUSION |
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| 50 | Wednesday | 7th October 2020 | Dedicating the Decade 2020 -2029 |
| Thursday | 8th October 2020 | Dedicating 2020/2021 | |
| Friday | 9th October 2020 | THANKSGIVING |
DATES TO NOTE
CONCLUDING VIRTUAL CONFERENCE
Monday, 5th October to Wednesday, 7th October 2020 (6 pm to 9 pm)
CONCLUDING NIGHT VIGIL & DEDICATION OF 2020/2021
Thursday, 8th October 2020
LABOUR & EMPLOYMENT
God is a worker. The Bible begins with the Godhead at work creating the earth and working on it. He worked hard for six days before He rested on the seventh. So work began with the Godhead, and work existed before the creation of man. Father, Son and Holy Spirit were the first to work on the earth and therefore work is inherently good. In assessing His work, God said five times that it was good. In the overall assessment, God was happy with the quality of His work and evaluated it as very good.
Man was created in the image of God. The first stated purpose for man was to work the Garden of Eden and to keep it (Genesis 2:15). That was before the Fall of Man. Adam and Eve were commanded to subdue (exercise control and discipline) and rule over (administer, take responsibility for, and make decisions) the earth. This mandate that was given before the Fall of Man applies to all vocations. Work is therefore part of our ministry on the earth.
The Fall of Man changed a number of things including the nature of work. The most severe result of the fall was death. In addition childbirth became more complicated than it should have been and work became more difficult and less predictable, as God cursed the ground. The ground would no longer yield to man’s efforts easily and in fact would resist it with thorns and thistles. The reward from work would thus no longer always be commensurate with the labor input. Toil would be required – implying challenge, difficulty, exhaustion, and struggle. Work however remained good as it came from an inherently good source – the Godhead.
The Bible is unsympathetic in its condemnation of laziness. We are to avoid those who are idle and refuse to feed those who deliberately choose not to work (this is different from helping those in genuine need). The Bible is also unequivocal on the way employees should be treated. Workers deserve to be paid in a timely way. God’s word reveals that work will one day be restored to its full original intent – free from the complications that sin brought about. Meanwhile God expects us to do all He puts in our hands as if we are doing it for Him and not just for earthly masters.
Countries with a strong work ethic are more prosperous and do better than those with a poor work ethic. This is a biblical principle. With a human development index (HDI) of 0.516, Uganda currently is classified in the low human development category – ranking it at 162 out of 189 countries. Also, a Human Capital Index (HCI) of 38 percent implies that, with the current state of education and health, a child born in Uganda is expected to achieve only 38 percent of their productive potential at age 18. In order to take advantage of the demographic dividend for economic growth, Uganda needs to create more jobs with higher labour productivity for its young population. Success in doing this will generate a growth dividend. Failure could lead to frustration among youth and challenge social stability.
SCRIPTURES FOR PRAYER AND PROCLAMATION
GENESIS 2:15
The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and keep it.
EXODUS 20:9-11
Six days you shall labor, and do all your work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God. On it you shall not do any work, you, or your son, or your daughter, your male servant, or your female servant, or your livestock, or the sojourner who is within your gates. For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day. Therefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
EPHESIANS 4:28
Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so
that he may have something to share with anyone in need.
1 THESSALONIANS 2:9
For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a
burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.
ACTS 20:35
In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
2 THESSALONIANS 3:6-15
Now we command you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from any brother who is walking in idleness and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us. For you yourselves know how you ought to imitate us, because we were not idle when we were with you, nor did we eat anyone’s bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you. It was not because we do not have that right, but to give you in ourselves an example to imitate. For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. As for you, brothers, do not grow weary in doing good. If anyone does not obey what we say in this letter, take note of that person, and have nothing to do with him, that he may be ashamed. Do not regard him as an enemy, but warn him as a brother.
1 THESSALONIANS 4:11-12
And to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one. to him who destroys.
1 CORINTHIANS 4:12
And we labor, working with our own hands…
PROVERBS 6:6-11
Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise.
Without having any chief, officer, or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer
and gathers her food in harvest.
How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.
PROVERBS 18:9
Whoever is slack in his work is a brother is a brother to him who destroys.
PROVERBS 14:23
In all toil there is profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty.
PROVERBS 10:4
A slack hand causes poverty, but the hand of the diligent makes rich.
PSALM 128:2
Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in his ways!
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with
you.
PROVERBS 12:11
Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits lacks
sense.
PROVERBS 12:24
The hand of the diligent will rule, while the slothful will be put to forced labor.
PROVERBS 13:11
Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.
PROVERBS 22:29
Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure
men.
DEUTERONOMY 28:12
The Lord will open to you his good treasury, the heavens, to give the rain to your land in its season and to bless all the work of your hands. And you shall lend to many nations, but you shall not borrow.
LEVITICUS 19:13
“You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired servant shall not remain
with you all night until the morning.
JEREMIAH 22:13
“Woe to him who builds his house by unrighteousness, and his upper rooms by injustice, who
makes his neighbor serve him for nothing and does not give him his wages,
MALACHI 3:5
“Then I will draw near to you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, against the adulterers, against those who swear falsely, against those who oppress the hired worker in
his wages, the widow and the fatherless, against those who thrust aside the sojourner, and do not fear me, says the Lord of hosts.
JAMES 5:4
Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.
WORSHIP GOD THE WORKER WHO CALLS US TO JOIN HIM IN HIS LABORS
Let us worship and praise God who created us in His own image and has given us the mandate, right from creation to have dominion on earth and put our hands to particular tasks.
THANKSGIVING
- Let us thank God for the new opportunities that have arisen as a result of the work from home methodologies and other hybrids like working in shifts; which can help businesses reduce on office expenses and invest more in expansion therefore raising employment opportunities and innovation.
- Let us give God thanks for Uganda’s young population, and the potential it presents to improve Gross Domestic Product (GDP), wealth and the security of the nation.
- Thank God for the focus on producing goods and services locally, which is providing more work opportunities for our population.
- Thank God for the recapitalization of Uganda Development Bank to provide long term financing.
PROCLAMATION FOR LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT
God is raising leaders who will restore the biblical work ethic in Uganda. There will be a new
attitude to work and labour.
Integrity, hard and honest work will be embraced as core national values.
Respect for labour will be restored.
Like Apostle Paul, ministers of the gospel will lead by example in working hard and earning an
honest living.
The corrupt and those who parasite off the labours of others will be despised and no longer held in
honor.
Rather those known to work hard will be respected, honored and made role models for society. Political positions will be treated with respect and seen as opportunities for service and not for ‘eating’ and amassing wealth.
Through efficient Government support systems, Uganda will develop a system of managing
unemployment rather than just managing programs.
Government savings and investments will be deliberate on job creation as outputs and have clear
mechanisms for monitoring and evaluation of job creation plans and promises.
Interventions will enable people to function effectively in the new work environments that are
emerging and continue to evolve.
The education system will be revamped to prepare learners for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in
which Uganda will be a key player.
Labour laws will be enforced to protect workers’ health, rights and provide for safe working
environments.
Uganda’s comparative advantages in agriculture will be fully harnessed to the point where
mere talk of our potential in agriculture and other sectors will be a thing of the past. Gross Domestic Product will grow by leaps and bonds as the country get to work and increased
productivity replaces idleness.
The eyes and ears of Ugandans will be opened to see and take advantage of the myriad
opportunities available for work and advancement within the country.
No longer will our youth be sold as slaves to work and build other nations leaving our own
untended to.
AMEN
