The other day I picked up this little book at a sale, and thought this story by Max Lucado was interesting.
She doesn't remember seeing the silver Nissan approach from the east. She remembers nothing of the 18 year old boy leaning out the window, holding, of all things, a frozen turkey. He threw it at her windshield.
The twenty pound bird crashed through the glass, bent the steering wheel in toward her and shattered her face like a dinner plate on concrete. The violent prank left her grappling for life in the ICU. She survived, but only after doctors wired her jaw, affixed one eye by synthetic film, and bolted titanium plates to her cranium. She can't look in the mirror without a reminder of her hurt.
Nine months after her disastrous November night, she stood face to titanium-bolted face with her offender in court. Ryan Cushing was no longer the cocky, turkey tossing kid in the Nissan. He was trembling, tearful and apologetic. For New York City, he had come to symbolize a generation of kids out of control. People packed the room to see him get his comeuppance.
The judges sentence enraged them; only six months behind bars, five years probation, some counseling, and public service.
The courtroom erupted. Everyone objected. Everyone that is, except Victoria Ruvolo. The reduced sentence was her idea. The boy walked over, and she embraced him. In full view of the judge and the crowd, she held him tight, stroked his hair. He sobbed and she spoke, "I forgive you. I want your life to be the best it can be."
She allowed grace to shape her response. "God gave me a second chance at life and I passed it on," she said. "If I hadn't let go of that anger, I'd be consumed by the need for revenge. Forgiving him helps me move on."
"This is the gift that God gives: a grace that grants us first the power to receive love and then the power to give it."
To view Max Lucado's blog click HERE
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