Craig Clouston

Anchored in God’s Love

For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more … shall we be saved through his life!
Romans 5:10

Rebecca and Brook shared a unique bond. People found it ironic. They knew it was anchored in God’s love. Rebecca’s son had been killed two years ago in a traffic accident. He’d been T-boned by a car eluding police in a high-speed chase.
Rebecca prayed for the young man who had taken her son’s life, asking God to help her forgive him. She prayed for him to have a revelation of God’s grace and healing power. When he was sentenced to prison, she began visiting, even bringing him a Bible. With each visit, Rebecca shared stories of her son’s life and how he had loved Jesus and served Him faithfully. During one of their visits, the young man gave his life to Christ. He shared how his mother had also come to know Jesus through someone’s selfless act of love, someone she had never met. He went on to tell Rebecca how, two years before, his mother had been the recipient of a heart transplant. It had changed her life. Before he finished, Rebecca knew—her son had been the donor, this young man’s mother the recipient. Shortly thereafter, Rebecca met Brook for the first time. They hugged silently in a tearful embrace. One weeping tears of grace, the other tears of gratitude.

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Not bound by a heart of unforgiveness, Rebecca was able to show the love of Jesus Christ to someone in desperate need of it. Being secure in the knowledge that her son was safe in his Savior’s arms, she was able to show grace and unmerited favor to someone the world would call her enemy.
Through the events that took her son’s life, Rebecca was able to see God’s hand at work instead of becoming bitter at the loss of her child.
It can be difficult to ask God to help us do something so unnatural. We cannot forgive this kind of wound in and of ourselves. We need divine assistance. Had God waited until He felt like forgiving us, we would be damned for eternity.

Prayer

“What shall we say, Lord, except thank You for Your mercy and grace, Your unmerited forgiveness and favor! Amen.”