Tribute to Mr. Mugume Stephen

Friends, I would like to take this opportunity to write a brief but heartfelt and sincere tribute to the late Mr. Stephen Mugume, one of the greatest school administrators of our generation. In February 2009, I was admitted to Kibuli Secondary School in Kampala. The decision to move to Kibuli was not an easy one. I was coming from Mengo Senior School where I had spent only a year, having left King’s College Budo after my four years there.

I anticipated that my life would not be the same again considering that this was my very first time in a Muslim school. At my former schools, I had enjoyed great opportunities for Christian fellowship and uninterrupted evangelism both King’s College Budo and Mengo Senior School, and now here I was at one of the top Muslim schools in the country! It was unimaginable for me what lay ahead.

Long story short, in the second term of that very year, I was appointed the School Bishop taking over from my dear friend Philip Ahabwe. What this meant was that I was the custodian and leader of the Kibuli Christian Students Association (KCSA) with the responsibility of coordinating Christian activities such as worship services and small group fellowships in the school. This appointment helped me realize that my fears of how I was to continue serving God and growing my faith in Christ were not as relevant as before. One of the reasons is because of people like Mr. Stephen Mugume who was then the Director of Studies (DOS) and Mr. Timothy Ssejjoba our fellowship patron.

The late Mr. Stephen Mugume giving a speech at a function

To shine the light on the person and impact of Mr. Mugume, I would like to say that pages would fill this whole earth to tell of a whole package of the attributes of hard work, consistency, faith in students and a great love for Jesus, all wrapped up in this man! I do not know of any student, Christian or Muslim, that ever dreamed of being in DOS’s bad books because when it came to correcting those in wrong, he did it so perfectly, and yet I also know a great number of students that would always line up at his office to seek counsel and wisdom whether it was spiritual or academic.

Before handing over office, one of my desires was to provide an opportunity for Christian students to have some form of entertainment and so I contacted a close ministry friend, Mr. Fred Kamson, whose evangelistic ministry was enveloped in reaching students through movies, music,and documentaries. However, the challenge was how we were going to sell this idea to the school administrators. When I approached Mr. Mugume, he welcomed the idea, made a few suggestions, and then invited me to join him in meeting the Headteacher, Mr. Matovu. The beauty of this meeting was not the affirmative answer we got, no! It was the fact that Mr. Mugume did the speaking and as I watched how he carefully and with profound wisdom presented this whole idea to the Headteacher, I was convinced that being such a minority group in the school, we had an advocate in this man. Eventually, we were given permission to bring in the movies however, this was not the end of the road for Mr. Mugume. Whenever the movies were being aired, he joined our leadership team to supervise and ensure that everything was in order lest we attracted criticism that could lead to the scrapping off of this opportunity. This would sometimes go until 2 am especially on the days preceding the last day of the term (commonly known as Kilo more), and he was right there with us. Precisely, he made us feel we were never alone!

Those who met and lived with Mr. Mugume always felt they were never alone with him in their company

When I left Kibuli in 2010 and later felt the call to start an evangelistic ministry, his son, Denis Mugume was one of the people that believed in the vision. In 2012 in the company of Denis, Hakiza Moses, and Wana Benjamin, we started Pacesetters’ Initiative for Africa a youth outreach and evangelistic ministry in Uganda.

It is unimaginably hard to eulogize a man like Mr. Mugume Stephen. I am reminded of the old saying that goes, “A tree is best measured when it is laid down” and without any reasonable doubt, so many people have testified of this man’s impact in their lives since his passing. In the Old Testament, King David said to his men concerning Abner, who had been King Saul’s army commander, “Do you not realize that a prince and a great man has fallen in Israel this day” (2 Samuel 3:38)? Indeed, a man of gigantic faith and wisdom in our day “has proceeded home to glory… We praise the Lord for the life well-lived and legacy left behind”, just like Denis Mugume’s announcement read on social media on October 15^th.

Mr. Mugume’s voice (bass) always reminded us why we were in school and to every student that went through his hands, he embodied a true example of a school administrator, a father, teacher, mentor, and patriot who genuinely loved and served his country in the very field God had called him to – Education. We miss him already!

Pastor Denis Mugume and his father Mr. Stephen Mugume

As a generation of young people, Mr. Mugume has passed on the baton to us. While he’s already in glory his works of charity, dedication to his work, untiring efforts to ensure the success of others, and a great team spirit are visibly inscribed on the hearts of those who knew him and without any doubt, even those who never had the opportunity of meeting this selfless man will have a glimpse of who this man was. Before Billy Graham died, he told his audience, “One day you will wake up to the news that Billy Graham is dead. Don’t believe a thing of that because at that time I will be more alive than I am now,” and so we believe that because of His faith in the person of Jesus Christ, Mr. Mugume is in heaven and for those of us who live with the same hope, look forward to meeting him there.

On behalf of my family and the entire family of Pacesetters’ Initiative for Africa, we pray that the God of all comfort continues to comfort Mama, Denis, Stuart, Dan, Doris, and the entire family.

In all things, give thanks (1 Thessalonians 5:18)!

Where do broken hearts go?

A few days ago, I was walking through town and there was this song by Whitney Houston that was playing through the loudspeaker – “Where do broken hearts go…?” I stopped for a minute and critically listened to the words.

Thousands in our community are broken and are looking for peace and joy that only Christ Jesus offers.

And I sensed that there are millions of people around the world and thousands in our community whose hearts have been broken as a result of failed relationships, broken promises, the loss of a loved one and the terrible news from the doctor of an illness that is eating up one’s immune system. We live in a broken world with so many broken people that are hurting, and as I closely listened to this 1987 song, I simply remembered the words of Psalm 61:2, “From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” Broken hearts have a refuge, a place where they can find full recovery and restoration – in Jesus Christ, the Rock of ages!

The chorus of this song goes like;

Where do broken hearts go
Can they find their way home
Back to the open arms
Of a love that’s waiting there
And if somebody loves you
Won’t they always love you
I look in your eyes
And I know that you still care, for me

The Bible teaches that people are created in the image of God (Gen.1:27) and that God knows how we are formed (Psalm 103:14). There’s nothing about us and what we go through that is strange to God our Creator. He knows the right condition of our hearts at whatever time of the day it is (Psalm 44:21).

Can they find their way home, back to the open arms of a love waiting there: Jesus in Luke 15:11-32 told his disciples the parable of the prodigal son. In this parable, Jesus said that this son had asked his father to give him his share of the estate. Not long after that he gathered up everything he had and went to a distant country where he squandered his wealth in wild living. Life eventually became so hard for him that when a great famine hit that whole country, he was in great need and so he went to be hired as a caretaker for pigs.

He was in such a desperate situation that “he longed to fill his stomach with the pods the pigs were eating, but no one gave him anything” (Luke 15:16).

Back to the open arms of a love that is waiting there: Jesus further narrated that when the boy came to his senses he recounted and finally resolved to go back to his father. The Bible says that “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalm 34:18). There’s absolutely nothing in this life we can experience that God has not endured in God’s human life as Jesus, for He was tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin (Hebrews 4:15).

Jesus said that “while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around him and kissed him” (v.20).

My friend, God knows our every weakness and He stretches out His arms wide open for you and me to come to Him for mercy and forgiveness. What Whitney Houston did not sing in that song is that the world doesn’t have the peace and rest that broken hearts long for. There’s only one way through which every broken heart can be fully mended and restored and that is in Jesus Christ; “…my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid” (John 14:27). In Him, there’s healing and forgiveness for every broken heart that is yielded to Him without any reservation.

The words of St. Augustine serve us a great reminder, “You have made us for yourself O, Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” Find rest in God, today!

The search is on!

All over the world people are searching for something they don’t know what. For instance, when the Samsung Galaxy S3 was released a few years ago many phone lovers thought it was the best there was however, when the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge came out the same people that had greatly consumed the S3 realized this redefined what a phone could do. Then came the Note 7, which we now are even afraid of. That’s the same trend every day as we keep searching for identity, comfort, peace, style and belonging in the wrong places.

After man had conquered land, water and air he also desired to explore and conquer outer space. The late 1960s were a time the world’s strongest nations flexed to search the stars and conquer outer space. The apex of this has been the quest for the existence of God. As we speak Asgardia is the proposed space nation where people from earth can go and live. Over 50,000 people have submitted applications to become citizens of this yet to be nation and competitions are underway to find a national anthem and flag for it. All this points us to the ever searching nature of the human spirit.

The Bible says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but in the end it leads to death” (Proverbs 14:12): How we so many times look in the wrong places for the peace, joy, happiness and wealth! The bible tells a story of the prodigal son who asked his father of his share of the estate. To him, this was the coolest thing to do and go have fun in a distant land. Perhaps influence from his friends had dictated to him that this was the best way to enjoy life and search for a new sense of belonging elsewhere. But we read that it was not the case.

THE NEED TO CHOOSE CHRIST.

I was both privileged and humbled to be hosted on Urban TV on 17^th May here in Kampala for the second time this year. When I was contacted the day before, I was informed that we would be discussing decision making in our daily lives. As I prepared for this great opportunity to speak to the world on this platform, I was fed with profound revelation in as far as making choices is concerned.

First of all, when one walks through a cemetery there is one thing common on all the Tombstones; all testify of a given period of time that these particular individuals had on this earth to make a difference. No one has eternity on earth. There is going to come a day when we will all be required to depart from here however, what challenge shall we leave behind for those that will come after us? In order to make a lasting impact in our generation, we have got to make choices that will propel us into positions or situations where we are not only on the receiving side, but on the giving side of life. When we stand on the latter side we have the precious opportunity to respond to the needs of man and be able to offer solutions to the problems that terribly wreck our world.

FOUR GREAT LESSONS FOR WORLD CHANGERS.

This happens to be my first article in 2015 and so I hope it is not out of order to wish you and your loved ones a happy new year! I have had a time of renewal and reassurance especially in my call to make a difference in people’s lives through evangelism. I believe this is going to be a great year for us.

By the grace of God I happen to head Pacesetters’ Initiative for Africa, a youth organization that is at the forefront of inspiring, challenging and influencing the youth of this generation to be the change that they want to see in their world, looking unto Jesus the ultimate Hope and Savior for mankind. God has enabled us to come together as young people with a desire to evangelize our generation and orchestrate a revival and moral renewal in our time. So, we had a three-day fast i.e from 11/02/2015 to 13/02/2015 as a team of the top executive members of our organization and during this period, God spoke to us numerous things that turned out to be million dollar lessons. However, I thought it a great thing to share with you only four (4) of these lessons that God has given to all those that have subscribed to the need to make a difference as world changers:

WHICH LORD ARE WE TALKING ABOUT?

Afew days ago I was doing some shopping for my mother in one of the big supermarkets in Kampala when I suddenly found myself greeting this stranger whose face looked familiar; “Praise the Lord!.” The man looked at me and asked; “Praise which Lord?” And he walked away leaving me just there standing in suspense! This reminded me of the ancient King Herod in the days of Jesus, who when news of the newly born King landed on his ears, was intrigued and wondered which King this was and where he had been born.

In the book of Acts 17:23, the Apostle Paul was moving through Athens looking carefully at their objects of worship when he saw an altar with the inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD! These people worshiped a God they did not know. I certainly believe that a great many people in our modern world seem to worship a God they know nothing about. I turn to you, beloved reader; which Lord are we talking about in our schools, churches, fellowships and other speheres of our lives?

The Bible does tell us in Psalm 124:8 and in many other passages of the same book that,”Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.” Actually, the Lord that many of us have heard about right from Sunday school is the one who created us. I mean, the Lord that the street preachers proclaim and some of us shut them out for allegedly “making noise for us” is the One by whose words and wisdom this whole world came into being. The man to whom we all owe our respect for laying a foundation for computers, calculators and other great scientific discoveries, Blaise Pascal, had this to say; “There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by anything, but only God, the creator, made known through Jesus.” Many people are daily asking that same question in their own hearts and to their colleagues. I take this opportunity to share with you some insights about this Lord that I believe in and in whose hands many have surrendered their lives. His name is Jesus Christ!

The emperor Napoleon in the 19th century spoke convincingly of the truth of the Bible’s claims about Jesus: “I know men, and I tell you that Jesus Christ is not a [mere] man… Alexander, Caesar and Charlemagne, and myself founded empires. But upon what did we rest the creation of our genius? Upon force. Jesus Christ alone founded his empire upon love…” His love is unconditional, for He Himself is Love. As a result of His love, man can nolonger live and die in sin. He took up man’s sin and now there is eternal life for all who believe in Him.

David Strauss, a German theologian and a most bitter opponent of the supernatural elements of the Gospels, whose work may have done more to destroy faith in Christ than the writings of any other man in modern times, confessed toward the end of his life that, “This Christ… is historical, not mythical; is an individual, no mere symbol… He remains the highest model of religion within reach of our thoughts; and no perfect piety is possible without his presence in the heart.” His peace is not like that of the world; it goes beyond understanding. In his presence is fullness of Joy. Words fail me to fully relay to you this Lord, but I cannot forget to say to you that “at the sound of his name every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that he is Lord,” (Philippians 2:10-11)

The Christian life is not a game or a hide out for criminals and other hypocrites. It is a testimony to the world about the One that lives on the inside. All the chaos in our world today can only be tamed and solved by exalting the person of Jesus Christ above every area of our interest and even rights,as Lord! We are His ambassadors in this world of sin. To those who don’t have Him as their personal Lord and Savior, I beseech thee to call into Him and receive Him now!! Call on His name and you will be saved (Rom. 10:13), for Jesus is Lord!!

KEEP YOUR MIND ON THE LORD

“You will keep him in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you.”- Isaiah 26:3

Peace of mind is what man needs for his proper perfomance and function in his endeavors. Without peace of mind individuals are restless, panicking, confused and worse still, with lack of a piece of mind, some individuals are taken to rehabilitation centres to get “fixed!”. People take long vacations away from the chaos and noise in the city and busy schedules as a way of seeking for a peace of mind. It is that necessary! It is this peace of mind that enables us to make clear decisions to move in the right direction and as well as keeping in balance.

Isaiah notes in the piece of scripture above that the man who chooses to focus and keep his mind on the Lord, will not only have peace, but he will be kept in perfect peace. The Lord remains the only true source of peace, wisdom and strength- and this is what we all seek for daily. Trusting in man, I have come to realize, proves only to be a venture of building on shifting sand. Jesus stated that,“My peace I give, but not as the world gives.”. His peace goes beyond all understanding, it is that peace that calms the storms waging in our lives, and it is also that peace that whispers to the sinner’s soul, “Go home and sin no more!”  The world hypocritically preaches peace, but prepares for war. Jesus Christ therefore remains the only source of the peace we so much long for. The Psalmist and Israel’s greatest king, David,  had this for a prayer that, “In you, O Lord, I have taken refuge. Let me never be put to confusion.”- Psalm 71:1.

In a world like the one we live in, ravaged by disease, sickness, famine, war and other insurgencies, we need the creator’s help. Broken relationships and marriages, lost jobs, failed examinations and interviews, all these breed restlessness and rob the human mind of its peace. The consequences of this are usually undesirable and at times unthinkable.
May we solely rest our hope in the Lord irrespective of our religious denominations or races- for he is the creator of us all. And as Isaiah proceeds to relay to us the message of trust in the Lord in verse 4, let us surely trust in the Lord for He is the Rock eternal.

IT ALL STARTS FROM SOMEWHERE!

Back in 2008 during my first year in high school I had a friend called Davis. He was my very good friend and we shared alot together as friends especially concerning spirituality and what we believed was our part to play in building the church- the body of Christ. Then came a time when Davis was going through a rather turbulent time in his life and I could easily read it on his face each day he walked into our S5 classroom. This would also negatively affect his academics.

As a loyal friend, I resorted to writing short encouraging messages on small pieces of paper which I would forward to Davis. Within a couple of days, I noticed a change in the way Davis expressed himself. It was positive this time, and this was affirmed by the words that my very good friend later said to me. “Why don’t you write a book? Your messages to me have changed my life and I don’t think they deserve a place on small pieces of paper because someone else may need them.”. Little did I know that Davis’ words would catapult me into writing my very first book, God’s Heart For My Generation. I wrote this book during my S6 vacation and went on to publish the 2nd edition, which was launched on the 21st of July 2012 at The All Saints’ Cathedral, Kampala. I am now working on my 2nd book and I have also written many other articles and weekly devotions under Pacesetters’ Initiative for Africa, which have left many lives inspired and transformed. But I had to start from somewhere! I started with Davis reading my small notes and now the world is following my articles on my blog at https://dusabepeter.wordpress.com, not forgetting that my book has already crossed the borders to the United Kingdom (UK) and South Africa through friends and relatives. Once again, I started from somewhere.

I am currently running my eyes over Steve Job’s biography “Steve Jobs; The man that thought different,” by Karen Blumenthal. One of the most fascinating things that I found in the first few pages of this biography is the revelation that the Apple computer was first launched in Steve Jobs’ parents’ garage in the early 1970’s. Together with Steve Wozniak, his apple co-founder, these two young men, in their early twenties, introduced the world to a new computer and probably didn’t know the impact their innovation would have on the world years later. You have undoubtedly witnessed the beauty and creativity in and behind Apple products, including the writer of this article. They didn’t have enough capital, not a big audience to listen to them and also believe in them, but they had to start from somewhere and this had to be a garage!

One of the greatest presidents of the United States of America, Abraham Lincoln, didn’t have a chance to go through formal education like other children as a result of dropping out. Infact, he spent the rest of his life having self education. He once stated that, “I will prepare and some day my chance will come.”. Lincoln had to begin from somewhere and no matter where he started from, this crafted him into the man that we all read about and get inspired. He started from somewhere.

Earlier in 2011 when I got the call to start up the Pacesetters’ Initiative for Africa, an organisation that reaches out to young people through inspiration, sponsoring education, and preaching of God’s word, I faced the challenge of getting on board like-minded people. By God’s grace, I got in touch with three friends of mine and this was the membership of the initiative for some few months. We used to meet at a restaurant along Kampala road in the city centre, for our weekly meetings. As we rolled out into operation months later, we got along other like-minded people and as I write this we have reached out to a number of young people in schools and university fellowships, had an outreach to a babies’ home in Kampala, held a successfull fundraising, and the number of members keeps increasing monthly. But we started from somewhere. It was a start of only four individuals and now through the eyes of faith I can see us cover continents as we point the generation to Christ (our motto).

I could go on and on with illustrations of individuals, churches and companies that began from scratch to lofty positions that they occupy today. Even Jesus Christ began with only 12 disciples that believed on His message and accepted His call. As you read this, billions across the globe are following Christ. I mean every sunrise and sunset, different people from all walks of life are giving up their lives to Jesus.
Beloved reader, you don’t have to look any further beyond what is in your hand, mind and heart. You need to start with the little that you have to create what you don’t have. It has been said again and again that, “The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.”. Likewise, take that one step by doing what your heart is leading you to and follow by faith as you trust in God, who doesn’t disappoint like other men.

As I conclude, the words of J.F. Kennedy deserve a place on this platform because they remind us of the importance of starting from somewhere. He remarked, “…All this will not be finished in the first 100 days. Nor will it be finished in the first 1,000 days, nor in the life of this administration, nor even perhaps in our lifetime on this planet. But let us begin.” (1960 Inaugural speech)