A True Story About Forgiveness and Grace

Preface:  This is Tom's story.  Larry and I know Tom and his wife Julie, personally, from our former church in Oregon.  Even though I already knew this story, and spent much time in the home of Megan’s daddy–the judge, and even though I saw him cry through his loss…I was touched anew by the story as Diane has written it. I was stunned anew by the forgiveness God wrought in Tom’s heart, and the strength God gave him to act upon this forgiveness for his own soul, in order to give that same forgiveness to the man who murdered his precious daughter.

..

His story was written by Diane Comer, the wife of our former pastor at Solid Rock--a Jesus Church, and published yesterday on her blog "He Speaks in the Silence". 
.
This was my comment and request to her: 
"Diane, this story is so deeply profound and moving…I wonder if you would allow me to either repost it on my own blog (giving you the credit for it), or simply refer to your post and direct my readers to your blog. Please consider my request and let me know your preference. I would also like to pass this on to our pastor. Larry has already shared the story with him, back when we received Julie’s email telling the outcome of Tom’s visit to the prison.".
..

Diane's reply:  "Jeannie~ This is Tom’s story which he allowed me to write in my own way… so you go ahead and pass it on in any way that works for you. What absolute astounding joy to see just the edges of how the Father will use the very worst of evil to draw hearts to His. And to think that sometimes I hesitate to forgive those who hurt my “feelings”!  
Much love to you, Diane"
.
Jeannie said: "Thank you so much, Diane! Who knew how far-reaching Tom’s story would be! We have an amazing God who always turns the bad into good, for the glory of His name, and for the furtherance of His plan of redemption. Another great illustration of 'For God so loved the world…' "

...
Other comments to Diane about this story:
.
Grace said:  "This is truly a remarkable story, sad but told in a very special poetic way. Diane, I love how you are such a wizard with words and you touch so many of us with your wisdom and encouragement each week. God blesses you with amazing positive energy to put beautiful words blended into thoughts with just the right depth to keep us pressing on, always looking ahead, never behind us."
.
Beth said:   "A beautifully written story of unimaginable horror turned to something far reaching and for His glory. Amazing. Thank you for penning this in your blog!"
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

.
Today I want to tell you a story.

.

But this is not a pretty story.
In fact, this story’s horrors may keep you up at night.

 So if you only like the nice ones, go ahead and move on because…

.

There’s nothing nice about murder.

.

This story begins many, many years ago when a baby girl was born to her proud father and adoring mother. Like every little girl, Megan loved to twirl and dance and laugh out loud. She played baby dolls and drew pictures of the sun and the stars and green trees beside pretty houses.

.
She poured love and embraced life.

.

But as so often happens for fairly-like little ones, Megan struggled through the painful metamorphosis from girlhood to womanhood.
Something snagged along the way. Pain invaded her safe cocoon. Misunderstanding and confusion and rejection and helplessness conspired to wreck her once-safe world.

.

So Megan ran away.

.
Away from the madness. Away from hurt. Away from a world gone bad.

But as she fled the darkness, her feet stumbled into that blackest of pits, catching her there, gripping her tight—drugs.

.
This little girl who once swirled to the applause of her parents, descended into the dark relief of nothingness.

.

Years passed. Years that should have been filled with boys and bouquets and snapshots of a life lived at the edge of joy. In their place were pictures of a hallow-eyed waif with too-limp hair and too-dull eyes.
Pictures that never made it to the scrapbooks.

.
Her parents tried to help.

.
Oh how they tried! Rehab and rescues and searching and letting go.

.
But the lost girl stayed lost to all that love. Lost on purpose.

.
And then one day the unthinkable twisted the nightmare into terror.

.

Megan was murdered.

.
Her proud father had to hear. And so did her mama. How their baby,
their beautiful, angel-haired, twirling little girl died alone.

.
Afraid.

.
And somehow it seemed to all who knew, that Satan won that day.

.

All those prayers. Didn’t God hear?
.
But this story didn’t end at Megan’s murder.
 ...

Maybe her story just started… maybe there’s a whole lot more to Megan’s life than her gruesome death… and maybe, just maybe, Megan is watching
 beneath the arms of God
 as this next saga of her story unfolds.
..
Megan’s adoring daddy, you see, is not a man to let things lie. He’s a man of action, of can-do-must-do-will-do drive.
And he’s a judge.  The black robed,
stern visaged, gavel-pounding guy
behind the oak stand.

.
His name is Tom.

.
Now I know what most of you are thinking.
Daddy gets bad guy and bad guy goes to hell!  Right? 
The good guys cheer and all the mamas all the world over
sleep a little easier tonight.

.

But that’s not this story.

.

The bad guy did get caught. It took a long time and a lot of men and a lot of mamas with a lot of fire to get this guy. But they did it. They got him.
And they locked him behind steel so he could never hurt
a lost little Megan ever again.

.

And he didn’t even say he was sorry. Not once. A really bad guy.

And Megan’s daddy— Tom— the judge— still grieved deep.

.

But somewhere in his mourning something happened.

Something strange and otherworldly and unexplainable.
Something about faith and the Father.
Something foreign to all the rest of us watching.

.
Tom forgave the man.

..

Reaching deep into that part of the soul no one sees,
Tom’s yearning for peace turned him to the One who called himself
the Prince of Peace.
And so he opened the book about that strange one
and searched inside the words to find what no one else could give.
What he found there shook his heart.

.
Words about mercy to the undeserving,
and grace for brutality
and forgiving the unforgivable.

.
Words like “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do.”

.
Those words.

.
And Tom, the one on the outside of those prison walls, felt his soul set free.

.
Really.

.
In fact, with the freeing of his heart, came something more.
Something hard to believe but true none-the-less.

.

Tom, the-little-girl’s-adoring-daddy, that Tom, went behind the bars
 to tell the man, that very bad man who had murdered his daughter,
about the One whose words set him free.
And that bad man who had never even wept a tear,
that one who had not so much as said 'I’m sorry',
broke apart.

.

While guards held guns and no one watched, Tom talked.
Words about One who died on purpose for men like him. 
Bad men.  And good ones too.
And how the God-man knew what He was doing when
He hung from that sin-scarred beam.
And how He had the bad man’s face and Megan’s face and Tom’s face
all tucked into His heart as He writhed in pain.

.

And Tom kept talking.

.

Words about why and words about how.
Words about life to the man who brought death to his daughter.

.

And when the man asked why, Tom just cried. A lot. And…

.
The one who wielded the knife and shed the blood and heard the screams—shattered in the face of forgiveness.

.

And I think Megan knows.

And smiles.

And twirls a bit before her other Father
with a glee and gladness and joy not known since her little girl days.

.

And so do I.

.

And so should you.

.

Because that’s not just an ugly story about a world gone bad.
And that’s not a story where the evil one wins.

.
That’s a story about One who sets the prisoners free.

..

All of us.
.-------------------------------------------------------------------------

.
Grace said:  "Speechless. Such a sad story we can only relate to on an unrealistic level. For me, when I step back and really reflect and refocus, looking at the injustices in my life, it really looks like a “temper-tantrum” and trivial now. I think for most of us when we think of injustice, we immediately remember the rude guy on 217, or the insolent customer who made us feel small when we did the best we could. These things, while our feelings were involved are so selfish in comparison to the story here, even if we struggle to forgive real things like the wrong from our parents where we bear the scars from their mistakes; even then when we step back and analyze our story to this one, our injustice is marginal. Suddenly, the weight of the balance in circumstances shift and we see what true forgiveness is. If this humble man was able to look his enemy in the face and stare into his eyes and share the gospel with someone we could never bear to be in the same room with, surely we can forgive whatever injustice done upon us. This story should shatter whatever glass house we barricade ourselves in, always focusing on the ugly rather than forgive."