Who's your friend?

Every guy I meet always wants to know about some friend of mine... "So, who's your friend?... Can I get her number?... Will you tell her about me?"  Sometimes I think that is God's idea of a practical joke.  After five years of this long-running joke, it simply is not funny anymore... Who am I kidding?  It is probably so hilarious, even the disciples laugh about it.  I bet they gather around a table and hit the replay button multiple times.  They probably pick the slow motion option too, freeze-frame, real time, the works.  Oh my word, my life is a PVR decoder advert.  

Well, the topic of this post has got nothing to do with the fact that I have too many attractive friends, but rather, that I have an unattractive friend who I have been subconsciously trying to hide because I have been ashamed of our relationship. I have denied this person in public and rejected opportunities to talk about this person or acknowledge my affiliations to this person by my actions.  

Luke 22: 60-62 Peter replied, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about!" Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed.  The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter.  Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him:"Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times."  And he went outside and wept bitterly. (NIV)

In the past few years, I feel like I have been walking on eggshells around non-Christians, careful not to offend them by announcing my faith with statements like "I will pray for you,"... "Wow God really blessed you,"..."Thank God for His protection."  I muted that voice so that I would not trespass on someone's belief system.  I thought I was being considerate and respectful of their faiths, but it came at the expense of my faith.  I started making compromises.  I always chose not to speak up in discussions about religion and spiritualism because I did not want to be the blow-horn Christian everyone hates.

Things escalated sooner than expected and I found myself in positions where I was constantly "tolerating".  I condoned slander against my God.  Someone would cuss in my presence and I would not even flinch. I would always second-guess mentioning God in a conversation, or Facebook status, heck even this blog!  It was okay for people to offend me, but it was not okay for me to offend them, because I did not want to "hurt" anybody.

I have grown up being hurt by hypocritical Christians and almost every non-Christian I meet has been hurt by a hypocritical Christian.  In my attempt to be the opposite of a hypocritical Christian, I achieved hypocrisy.  Saying one thing and doing another.  Saying I am a Christian, but not acting like one.  What I really had to do in those situations was share the Gospel.  If I did, non-Christians would realise that Christians are not perfect people passing judgment on them.  It is true, we are terrible people and we do hurtful things, but we have been sanctified and we are being made into the likeness of Christ.  Christ is perfect.  Christ does not judge. Christ does not hurt. We are only Christians because God graciously chose us first, and we rely on that grace every day for life.  

I forgot that being a Christian meant that I was a follower of Christ and simply walking in obedience to Christ would not hurt anybody.  I was trying to achieve Christianity by my own strength, which is impossible and the opposite of the Gospel.  Apostle Paul illustrated that perfectly

Romans 7:19 For the good that I want, I do not do, but the evil I do not want is what I keep doing. (ESV)

But I was an idiot and I made stupid decisions. I made a mistake.  I offended the only person who really matters. I became Peter and denied Jesus and there is nothing I can do to retract those actions. All I can do is trust and rely on His grace to come through for me without fail, as it always does.

The good news is that Peter was restored and he could live without shame.  He even died for the cause of Christ.  And that is what I aspire to do, live proclaiming the goodness of God and the Gospel of Christ by my words and actions.  

So, let me introduce to you a friend of mine.  His name is Jesus.  We have been friends for about 10 years.  He has been a good influence in my life.  I have been trying to be less of myself and more of Him.  And when I meet new people, I always pray that they will get to know Jesus-in-me and not me, because I will hurt people, but Jesus will never.  

I am Lameez Omarjee and I am unashamed to say that Jesus Christ is my friend.  

An Education

I was blessed to graduate for my honours degree.  It brought back memories of my first postgraduate year.  Seeing my old classmates reminded me of the valuable time we shared, and how over a span of a year we became friends.  Although this time, things were different.  We were much different.  Not so fresh faced and eager to impress as we were the year before.  We are grounded adults now, and our stories are written on our faces.   

Proverbs 3:13 Blessed is the man who finds wisdom, the man who gains understanding (NIV)

It has only been a matter of months, but we have already grown into the responsible citizens we were groomed to be.  Our parents looked proud as they watched us engage in adult conversations, “What are you doing these days?”...  “How are things at work?”... “When is the wedding?”... “What is it like living in a different city?”  A year ago we asked different questions, “Did you read the articles for class?”... “How is your research coming along?”... “Do you want to hang out after the last exam?”... “Did you get a job offer yet?”

Those were days we took for granted and now some of us are doing the very things we set out to do, and have found that things in reality are much more difficult to accomplish than in theory.  However, we were inspired with hope to fight for the things we believe in and to stand up for our values, unshakably and relentlessly.  A special moment for me was before I got capped, the acting Vice Chancellor said, “Yey, yey for girl power.”  I was pleased to receive those simple words from a fiery feminist and I will always hold onto them as I endeavour to leave my fingerprint on the world.

Every day since the completion of my studies I have found more reasons to be grateful for my education.  Education liberates you from the only thing withholding your freedom; your mind.  It sets you free from your self-doubt and the limiting ideas of your identity and the path your life will take. 

An education throws you in the company of unlike minds who have tapped into greatness, just as you did when you chose it.  The choice of education is what some people fight to have and what others fight to keep, and the ones who choose to share it find friends.  As I tried to soak up the company of my friends one last time before the rest of our lives, I thought about how their presence made a difference in my life.  I was grateful that these great people shared their education with me. 

I did not just work to receive an honours degree, I gained so much more in that experience and I wish more people would make the choice to fight for their education.  I learnt that an honours degree is not about being awarded the degree, but rather the things you learn in obtaining that degree.  It is not the academic knowledge and understanding you gain, but rather the self-trust and independence you develop.  It is not the positions you get to choose from once you are qualified, but rather the courage to compete for the likes of Oxford and Columbia.  It is not the games or the parties you had to miss, but rather the taste of what it feels like to solve problems through research.  It is not the networking you get to do, but rather the lifelong friendships you seal. 

An education is not a gift reserved for the gifted, but a task that challenges you to hold on a little longer and to push a little further because the pleasure of learning is one of those blessings God sets aside for you to appreciate with moments of “Aaaaah!”