People are Complicated

For about 5 months now I've been forming a friendship with this girl I'll call Amal. She's in 8th grade and boards, or lives at the school. I see her a few times a week and we talk about all kinds of things. She grew up in this area, but she moved to Nairobi for a few years and only returned in January when her father died. Her mom works in the government department of education and was transferred back here to work and be near her family.

The first time I met Amal was maybe the third or fourth time I'd been to the school on Sunday to help with the Sunday School program there. I was sitting with two girls after the service trying desperately to get them to talk to me (for the fourth Sunday in a row), and beginning to feel like maybe this wasn't a valid ministry opportunity if the kids weren't interested in friendship and I just came every Sunday to sit awkwardly and drink chai.Then out of no where, Amal walked up, asked me my name and started talking to me! Ever since then we've been friends.

A few weeks ago, one of the teachers at the school commented on our friendship and said he was glad I was pursuing her because she was "just a step away from the kingdom." This really confused me because that first Sunday Amal had told me she was a Christian and I'd been relating to her with that understanding. The next Sunday I asked her carefully if she was a Muslim because one of the teachers thought she might be, and she replied that people are confused because she went to Islam classes before she left for Nairobi and now she attends the Christianity class (both religious classes are offered by law and the students choose which to attend). I went away fairly certain the teacher was just misled and told him what she had responded. The end of the story is that he finally went to her himself and asked her if she was a born again Christian (there's a distinction here between those who are born again and those who are not...I'll have to try and explain that some time) and she said not yet.

So after months of thinking this young lady is a follower of Christ, I've discovered that she is not in fact saved by her own admission. Not that God hasn't used our conversations and my relationship with her thus far, but I'm sure I could have been more intentional in presenting Christ to her if I had been aware. I'm not sure if she is afraid of my reaction or if she was just politely avoiding a direct answer, but I want to reassure her that nothing will change in our friendship. Except of course that I'll rewind a little bit and focus on Jesus and the gospel instead of discipleship type of conversations.

I've definitely learned not to assume I understand a person or a situation from the start. People are complex creations and it's only by the guidance of the Holy Spirit that I can speak into someone's life. Who knows, maybe even in my ignorance God used me to show the hope and love of Christ to Amal. I sure hope so!