Friends

 

This year, I started sharing short stories about God's remarkable ability to teleport things, along with some experiences I had at school. If you missed them, you can catch up on Instagram @azintiya. In one story, I spoke about my final year at the university, a year filled with faith-building and the seemingly impossible.

Let me share more stories, but this time, I hope they guide you in choosing friends and highlight the power of having the right support system.

Due to carryovers in my first year, there were subjects I couldn't take until I passed them. However, in the final year, you usually get some grace to carry pending papers to enable you to graduate with your peers. That was usually the norm, but for some reason, in my final year, things were about to get heated up in the Biochemistry Department.

Since "Nothing is easier to bring a group of people together than a common enemy," I and a few classmates who, like me, had pending papers formed a prayer group. They were serious Christians, and we met weekly to pray about our academic challenges. Our group was a combination of the most unlikely, but we were united in purpose and prayers.

I had just finished my industrial training and was getting ready to go back to school for the first semester when one of the group members called to inform me of a sudden change in the department. The acting Head of Department (HOD) was not allowing students to carry 400L courses without passing their 300L counterparts. She told me that some students had gotten it signed while he rejected that of some, so it was a 50/50, and for her, it was not signed. This was a departure from the norm. Panic set in as my heart dreaded the possibility of being a "spillover student."

After our conversation, I sat on my bed and prayed. I told God to please go ahead of me, and if he knew I would graduate that year, he should grant me favor so they would sign the course for me. But if he knew the case would not be so, he should not allow my hopes to be raised and dashed, so he should make them not sign.

While deep in thought, the Holy Spirit reminded me of some of the things a pastor shared with us at Winners Chapel where I followed my older sister and uncle for the Crossover Service (1st January 2006). The pastor, a funny but fiery Yoruba man, had spoken about faith and God’s ability to do the impossible and told us that that year, we would not fail. He said, “Even if you write jaga jaga” in an exam, you won't fail. I am not advising you not to study hard and prepare for your exams, but I need you to know that your ability to pass or fail that year will not be dependent on your level of brilliance and academic prowess. He even declared, “For every student here, no carryovers this year!” and shared some serious testimonies from the lives of his kids, which encouraged me greatly so I was convinced that if God could do it for him, he would do it for me. I listened to him from across the room, and he said it with such confidence that I believed him. Besides, by then, God had already used a pastor at Mountain of Faith to teach me to believe in God’s true prophets.

So that year, I was determined to hold on to the words of that pastor with all my might, and I backed it up with the scripture that says, “Believe in God that you may be established and in his prophets that you would prosper.” If he was a true man of God and God had told him to say what he did, then it would come to pass, and I would not fail anything that year. Little did I know the test of that faith was imminent.

Upon resumption, I prayed for favor and asked that God would order my feet aright as I was told the acting HOD was not around, but another lecturer had been assigned to the task. I went to his office and presented my courses while preparing my heart for the outcome and declaring what the pastor had told us. Surprisingly, he signed everything for me. I was so happy as I left his office. Little did I know that my joy would be short-lived as I later discovered my prayer group friends did not get their courses signed.

Eventually, time went by, and exams were fast approaching. One of the papers that wasn’t signed for the others was coming up, and I didn’t even know how to ask them to pray for me without seeming insensitive as I kept considering how I would feel if they had signed for the others and not myself.

They seemed to sense my burden and offered to pray as one of them said, “Serah, don’t you have a paper to write tomorrow?” I shyly said yes, and they began to pray fervently for me. I was amazed at their thoughtfulness and sincerity. At one point, I could not even pray as I felt overwhelmed with emotions and their support, so I just kept staring at them. I could not comprehend how they could do this for me despite their unmet expectations concerning that course, but that was one of the ways God taught me spiritual maturity.

After prayers, I went to class to attend to something when I ran into some of my classmates who, like me, were lucky to get their course forms signed despite the complications in the department. We started discussing preparations for the exam when they began to advise me not to bother reading anymore as some other classmates who were unable to get the necessary approval to write their pending papers had gone to confront our acting HOD about the issue and proposed that we should not be allowed to sit for the exam. When I heard this, my heart sank. They told me our HOD said that they shouldn’t bother about us because even if we sat for the exams, the papers would not be marked. I then asked them for the way forward, and they told me that they would not bother reading or coming for the exams the next day and advised me to do the same. Being that I was acquainted with them and we were friendly in class, I believed them and took the matter to heart.

I went to my room and cried before God, asking him to intervene in my situation. I reminded him of the prayer request I had tabled before him to please not get my hopes up if I wouldn’t be allowed to graduate that year. After I had prayed and cried, I decided to call one of my most trusted friends, Mulan. When she got to my room, I began to cry while giving her a detailed narration of what I had been told. My friend looked at me and told me not to worry. She shared a testimony about how her mom and a friend of hers had faced a similar situation when they were in university but to the surprise and amazement of classmates who had thought they wouldn't participate in their convocation, they saw them wearing their gowns and receiving their certificates. Her testimony gave me hope (please never miss an opportunity to share your testimony with someone; the bible is not lying when it says it's one of the things that help us overcome the devil), but goodness, this was ABU we were talking about, and the Biochemistry department was something else (if you know, you know).

While I was fighting doubt and trying to encourage myself with her words and testimony, she then burst out laughing and said with certainty, “Don’t believe those people, prepare for your exam and go and write it tomorrow. Which student in our department do you think can have the courage to go and face the Acting HOD and even give ultimatums?” We prayed together, and she left. I struggled to read that night because the devil kept trying to sow seeds of doubt in my heart, telling me I was wasting my time.

The following day, I went to the hall ready for anything. My greatest surprise came when I entered the exam hall, and behold, the very classmates who had told me not to bother coming for the exams were seated in the hall waiting for papers to be shared! My surprise was palpable. We wrote the exams seamlessly.

I left the exam hall thanking God for Mulan, who had encouraged me to go and sit for the exam. I don’t even want to imagine how angry and upset I would have been if I hadn’t gone, only to later find out that the exam held seamlessly and my faithful advisers who told me they would not bother coming for the exam had gone to write. Chai!! I would have been extremely upset and disappointed with myself.

That day, I learned four valuable lessons:

1.      The importance of a robust support system and aligning with individuals who share your faith cannot be overstated; they are pivotal in shaping a person's life.

2.      Surround yourself with individuals who genuinely care about you, enough to pray for your well-being even if they are yet to receive the very blessings they are seeking on your behalf.

3.      Appearances can be deceiving; not everyone who wears a smile and is pleasant necessarily harbors genuine affection for you or has your best interests at heart.

4.      Embrace the mindset of 'always try.' While the possibility of not achieving the expected outcome exists, the worst-case scenario is merely falling short. On the flip side, there is also the potential for success, but you'll never uncover it if you refrain from attempting it.

It's truly remarkable that Solomon, known as the wisest and richest man to have ever lived, emphasizes in Ecclesiastes 4:9-10, "Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up." Moreover, Proverbs 17:17a wisely states, "A friend loves at all times!"

I find it disheartening to hear people express sentiments like, "I don't need friends; I'm good all by myself," as they might be missing out on life's richness. While acknowledging that some have been hurt by friends and had unpleasant experiences, it's important to recognize that there are genuinely kind people eager to love, pray, and stand by your side.

I speak from personal experience, having incredible friends who have evolved from companionship to become chosen family. Our bond is founded on choice and love, surpassing the ties of blood, making them some of my best and most cherished assets.

For those who may still doubt the importance of having friends, we'll explore this topic further in my next blog. Perhaps my next story will help shift your thinking a bit. Looking forward to our next meeting.

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