The story behind this emotional scene is complicated. Goodrich struck and killed two young men with his car who were helping pull a man from a burning vehicle on a Dallas highway. Josef was hit too but somehow survived, though multiple injuries cause him to hobble in horrible pain everyday. At the sentence hearing Monday instead of responding to Goodrich with anger or vengeance Josef provided us all a great lesson. He limped over to the man responsible for his life-altering injuries and said, “I forgive you.” At this Goodrich could no longer hold back his emotions, and the tears mixed with regret began to flow.
Josef’s incredible example of forgiveness, reminiscent of Stephen in Acts 7, is one of the purest I’ve ever witnessed. Yet it pales in comparison to the forgiveness Christ brings into our lives. We’ve all got complicated stories that are deserving of a harsh sentence, but it is a punishment we won’t receive. Jesus responds the same way Josef did, bestowing rich mercy wrapped in a warm embrace. Not only does he pardon us but he hands down a verdict of “not guilty,” something even Josef was incapable of. And true comfort and peace are found only when we accept this gift from our Savior. I pray this week we will all take hold of Him and know, be it even with tears, that regardless of our crime we are completely forgiven.
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pic of the day, Wolf Creek:
2 comments:
I think forgiving someone is so hard....this was such a great lesson....so many small things happen that we can not let go of and this man almost had his life taken and he could forgive...makes our small frustrations so trivial...thanks for the reminder of how we should fogive
Thanks for all the encouragement. Your words always challenge me, and I am thankful for people like you to remind me of what's truly important!!
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