GIVING THANKS FOR GOD'S BLESSINGS (FEB 4)

PRESIDENT John Evans Atta Mills last Friday and Sunday joined Muslims and Christians to thank God for very peaceful and successful elections.
Both events were conducted in an atmosphere of peace, love and unity, emphasising the need and desire to put politics aside and unite Ghanaians.
The country has come out of undoubtedly the most keenly contested election in its history and there is no doubt that political rifts have been created as a result of the intense electioneering.
However, after the elections, there is the need to come together and collaborate to move the nation forward.
The new administration showed the commitment to chart a path of unity and friendship by ensuring that political party activists did not take centre stage at both events and that is, indeed, commendable.
Indeed, the attendance recorded at both events re-affirmed the belief of Ghanaians in the supreme will and grace of God, a belief that was aptly echoed by the President when he noted that without God’s grace “we strive in vain”.
The religious services should not be seen as cosmetic occasions to showcase our religious traits and fervour. Rather, they must inspire all Ghanaians to rededicate themselves to the ideals of the two religious denominations.
The President was right on spot when he admonished Ghanaians to apply the principles of honesty, transparency and hard work in all aspects of their daily lives.
Christianity and Islam impose obligations on their adherents to be honest, transparent and hardworking and, therefore, such a call is clearly in line with our basic religious principles.
As a developing country, there are basic developmental challenges that must be addressed and that will require a true spirit of unity, honesty, transparency and hard work.
Without these, we shall continue to subject ourselves to the ills of underdevelopment and blame others for our difficulties when, in reality, we may be our own enemies.
The DAILY GRAPHIC believes that these religious thanksgiving services provide that ambience for a sober reflection on our individual contributions to national unity and development.
Even as the nation thanks God for showering His blessings on Ghanaians, there is also the need to recognise that God expects us to commit ourselves to the demands of selfless nation building.
We need to bear in mind the maxim that “Service to man is service to God” and avoid acts that will question our selflessness.
President Mills has proposed the setting aside of a special day for thanksgiving, suggesting that Muslims hold theirs on the last Friday of January while Christians do so on the first Sunday of February each year.
The President has set the tone for acknowledging God's hands in the country's forward march towards progress and we urge Christian and Muslim leaders to reflect on the suggestion to make the implementation smooth.