Why Dear Mulokole?

“…It doesn’t matter what you do…”

Throughout my life, even before I got saved, I have always known that Christians ought to be people who dwell in God’s word (the Bible), and their lives ought to be different from that of unbelievers. I am not sure why I have always thought this way, but I did. Perhaps it was a lingering understanding that a Christian has no business living the sort of life I lived before I got saved. So, you can imagine my shock and surprise when I got saved, joined a community of ‘believers’, and found that most Christians either did not share my view or, if they did, they were not bothered by the dissonance between their profession of faith and how they lived their lives.

I distinctly remember going to a friend of mine, sharing my struggles and asking her for advice, and her response was, “Stop thinking about your sin. It doesn’t matter what you do if you’re a Christian. Jesus paid it all, past, present, and future.” While some aspects of this statement are true, I was shocked by her claim that it did not matter what I did. What was I supposed to do with all the biblical commands to live a holy life, repent of my sin, be holy as He is holy, etc.? I was particularly shocked by this statement because the kind of life I lived before I was born again was the kind that even unbelievers would also confess deserved God’s wrath. It didn’t sit well with me, so I did not take that advice. I later found that many professing Christians believed this statement entirely true. This group was the first type of Christian I encountered.

Where is my blessing?

Later, as I grew in my knowledge of the word of God, I encountered a second type of Christian. This one knew God’s word and read it regularly but then denied the essential truths taught in that word, e.g. the sovereignty of God, the providence of God, the atoning death of Christ and His defeat of all principalities and powers (this includes Satan), either through the way they lived their lives or what they professed. Alas, I was, at one point, one of them. This is the type whose sin is not their fault but some demonic entity using them (how that is not demon possession, I wonder). Their desires are not ‘manifesting’ because Satan has withheld them, mostly due to some sin by some ancestors that they never met but whose sin they must confess and repent of (generational curses).

This, too, greatly bothered me. The God of the Bible does not seem feeble and weak, unable to bring about His plans for those who have trusted in Him. Isaiah 55 did not fit well with the Christianity I heard on pulpits, numerous fellowships, and Christian radio stations. How can God, whose word does not return to Him void, have His plans foiled by mere creatures? Was I reading the Bible wrong?

Where is the truth?

For a while, I felt so alone and disillusioned. I was labelled a ‘heretic’ in many of the fellowships I attended for challenging some of these beliefs. I was often asked, “How can all the people who believe this be wrong? Do you think you’re wiser than this pastor and that pastor, etc.?” Herd mentality – a psychological phenomenon where individuals adopt beliefs, behaviours, or attitudes of the majority in a group – was what these people lived by.

But then I encountered a third type, and I was one of them and continue to be. Disillusioned by the dissonance, the type of messages on Christian radio and in pulpits, they sought the truth. Unfortunately, many do not know where to find biblical truth except on the internet, which can also be a minefield since most of the content is anything but good. Also, finding biblical content contextualized for Ugandan Christians and the Ugandan church is even more challenging.

Dear Mulokole…

There is a great need for biblical truth in Uganda. So many Christians are lost in the first and second categories. They do not know the truth about the God they claim to serve. They have been duped by people who do not know the Bible themselves. Others have been caught up in wrong teachings that are not biblical, but they do not know better. They are circling ‘mountains and valleys’, hoping their actions will set them free, yet never realizing they believe a false message.

By God’s grace, those in the third category have had their eyes opened, yet many struggle to contextualize the message and apply it to their lives. The question of how the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ impact our lives and worldview in Uganda is still far off for many.

Dear Mulokole was birthed from this great need and a desire to see many lives transformed by the gospel. I hope many will see the truth revealed in Scripture through engaging with us. I hope not only to honour my Lord and Master in His Great Commission but also to serve my brothers and sisters, equipping them and learning from them on this journey.