Raffiq Ismail said that he turned his life around with the help of the KwaSizabantu Mission in KwaZulu-Natal. He shared his experience with us and wanted our readers to know the truth about the Mission’s role in his life. We trust his story will mean as much to you as it did to us.
“Confessing our sins helps us to come to terms with the wrongs we did, and – at the same time – it reminds us of our weakness and God’s wonderful grace,” Raffiq told us. “That is one of the reasons why people, once they accepted Jesus into their lives, not only want to confess sins but make it right with those they have harmed and restore that which he took violently from others, called restitution.”
Raffiq was born a Muslim, but he eventually came to understand and experience the value of confession and restitution. As a child, he attended secular school in the mornings and Islamic school in the afternoons, where he learned from the Quran. This was his daily routine. Little did his family know the state of his inner self. His heart yearned and longed to be a rebel like the other boys and girls at school and in his community.
In high school, he performed well enough and maintained a relatively good image. But as the years passed, he decided to rebel and joined a group of bad friends with whom he experimented with drugs and alcohol. Miraculously, he finished matric with excellent results that could have gotten him into any university in the country. However, not having a clear direction in life led to him sitting at home watching movies and listening to music the whole day while his family went to work.
“Boredom set in, and soon I found myself hanging around with friends, smoking cigarettes and dagga, and going to nightclubs where I would take Ecstasy and drink alcohol. As time went on, I was introduced to smoking ‘Whoonga’ (low-grade heroin). I became dependent on Whoonga to get me through the day as I would suffer from withdrawal symptoms as soon as I opened my eyes in the morning,” Raffiq recalled.
Jobs never lasted, and he started selling his possessions for the next fix. He ended up living on the streets, eating from dustbins, and sleeping under bridges and on top of park benches. For almost a year, he slept next to the tombs in a cemetery. He was regularly beaten up because he stole from people and places and was often caught. Prison became the norm for him, as he was arrested multiple times. Booking into rehabs also didn’t work because he relapsed minutes after setting foot outside the premises. This went on for nine years…
When Raffiq turned 27, his life was a complete mess! But somehow, he staggered and stumbled his way to the gates of CYPSA at KwaSizabantu Mission in March 2015. That was the turning point in his life. He signed in with CYPSA and attended regular church services where they preached about Jesus Christ and the forgiveness of sins. As he attended the services and listened to the Word of God being preached in truth, God started working in his life. He began confessing his sins, and the burdens he carried on his shoulders rolled away. Not long after that, he accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Saviour and gave his heart to Him.
Since surrendering to Jesus, Raffiq’s life has completely turned around for good. He recently completed a BEd degree in teaching through North-West University, even graduating Cum Laude (with distinction)!
He concluded, “The grace the Lord has shown me is miraculous. Not only has He changed my heart, but He has preserved my brain from harm through all the years of drug abuse. I was able to make restitution with my family and community. I even presented myself to the police, who cleared me of all my outstanding charges!”
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