GOODBYE TO MY FRIENDS?

Being Born again - 3 words

Conversion - 3 syllables

Every human seek friendship, we all want to have someone or people who can catch us when we fall. We want to be connected with friends and it is categorically so because we were created for true friendship. In fact, I can say the cross is certainly the most heroic act of friendship in history. As believers, many of us have to face the issues of pulling away from the "friends" we used to have while we were in the world or our friends end up pulling away from us. More than anything, there is a reason you were saved, you are placed there like a light to shine in the darkness where you used to be. 

Sometimes, Christians still drown in their old ways, they are drowning in their old ways because they are not surrounded by the right people. Many are keen on satisfying their friends but the scripture says 

“If you come to me but will not leave your family, you cannot be my follower. You must love me more than your father, mother, wife, children, brothers, and sisters—even more than your own life! Whoever will not carry the cross that is given to them when they follow me cannot be my follower.

Luke 14:26‭-‬27 ERV

Many are shy to talk about Christ, no one is aware of their salvation but never forget that Jesus wasn't shy about his love for you when he was almost beaten to death and later crucified on the cross.

In all brutal honesty, when you become born again, spiritually, you aren't the same with your group of friends anymore. You both can never see life the same way again because of the shift that's happened to you which is quiet understandable. In this case, what do you do? Jesus was referred to as the friend of sinners, he talked to them, he wined and dined with them, he didn't condemn them; this made him earn the name "The sinner's friend". He did all these with them but had a circle of close friends, people who he spent a lot of time with, people who were on the same ground with him, people who understood what he knew. 

Discarding your old friends doesn't do the trick, it's more like you are condemning them. You encountering God is a way to show your old friends that God is nearby, just so they'd know that light is about to flood their sight. Being born again means there are certain advises you can't seek from your old friends, you have to draw a new circle of friends who have the same standing with you spiritually and all the other "lly". There are certain things they'd never know until they come into their identity in Christ; it is what it is. You cannot continue to be who you were before you came into Christ. There is no middle ground between His teachings and what He requires of you and the intimacy of true friendship with unbelievers.

Just maybe you experienced or are experiencing what I also experienced, my close friends drifted away from me after I became saved. Maybe they probably felt I'd shove my belief down their throat but I'm willing to make them know that Christianity doesn't work that way. Yes, the scriptures identified that it pleases God that all men be saved and as a believer, you should be about the father's business; spreading the gospel to every corner of the earth but many Christians do this wrongly. Many of us feel we're preaching the gospel without knowing how much condemnation we preach. Your lifestyle is very important to unbelievers because before they hear the words that'll somersault out of your mouth, they'd first take a look at your character. Your lifestyle is the first book unbelievers get to read before they read the bible. Once in a while, I message my old friends and while we're talking, I chip in scriptures that are related to what we're talking about and I ask them if they've recently attended church service and read their bibles - It's not as stressful as we make it seem. An old friend said he didn't want to speak to me again but once in a while I check up on him calling him pet names. Behave like this towards them and still settle their matter in prayer. 

Certainly, you'd have to draw a new circle when you become born again, you need to have people who can edify you when you need it which unfortunately, your old friends are incapable of. My one cent is this; love them, talk to them about life, their struggles and Christ, tell them about God's beautiful love, pray for them and leave them to God to work his wonder. For as many times as you tell them about Christ, you keep sowing a seed in their heart. There's a high tendency that you will lose friends, this is part of what sits on your face when you decide to follow Jesus. He asked Peter "do you love me more than these?" and he's asking you the same question today. Like me, you may feel sad and brokenhearted but believe me when I tell you that God will mend your heart and bring the right friends your way.

DISCLAIMER!

You cannot be cool and keep your old friends, you can't hide Christ from everyone forever; God won't even allow you. Sooner or later, you'd have to come out on this and choose but since you have to choose, always, inevitably, choose Christ. You'd never regret it!

I hope this comforts anyone going through this. Do not forget to comment, like and share😘😘