when God shows up (part 2)

Finishing yesterday's story about Mike...

As Mike and I sat crying over the loss of his daughter, I turned to him and said, "You know, someday you'll have to forgive the man who killed your daughter. Because you're a Christian now, you'll need to ask God for that kind of forgiveness. Maybe not today or tomorrow, but someday..." Mike nodded in silence as we continued to sit, talk and pray together that early morning.

The next day Mike was sitting there again. Crying again, though not like the day before. As I sat with him, he told me that he'd called his wife and told her to sell his guns. He didn't need to come home because he'd forgiven the drunk driver that had hit and killed his little girl. In that moment, I knew that Mike followed Jesus. I told him that he might be more of a Christian than I, since I'm not sure I could have offered that kind of forgiveness that quickly. Mike's face reflected a peace he had only recently come to know. he was a new man, and it showed.

I think it was near the end of that week that our Community Assistance team decided that Mike needed to go home. He wasn't completely free of alcohol yet, but they felt he should be with his family. He nervously (and probably a bit reluctantly) agreed, so they purchased a ticket and placed him on a 29-hour bus ride to Green Bay. Those 29 hours became five days as Mike had to get off in Chicago and go to the hospital. But he did make it back to Green Bay, where he has called me periodically since. Here's a compilation of some things that have taken place in the years since he left (kinda chronologically, as I remember them):

- Mike was reconciled with his daughters, and they and his ex-wife forgave him;
- he turned himself in for some old outstanding warrants and did his jail time, so that he'd have no more trouble from his past;
- he found a roommate, a job and a church;
- he had people repeatedly ask him if he was high because they saw something so different in his eyes, and he would use the question as a chance to tell them how Jesus had changed him;
- he had someone help him get new front teeth (his were missing from too many fights!);
- he called to tell me that he and ex-wife had become good friends again, even though she didn't want to remarry him;
- several months later he called to let me know that he and his ex actually did get remarried!
- he got a great job managing a tire store, and they were sending throughout the region for training opportunities;
- he and his "new" wife were getting ready to buy a house!

Not every story turns out like Mike's, I know that. But I also know that if God can change a man like this, he can change anyone who's willing to come to him. And with that example emblazoned in my heart, I remain encouraged as we spend time with those around us, telling them about the hope to be found in Christ. The hope that Mike found. The same hope that's available to them. And we'll keep sharing. Because we never know just when or how God's gonna show up.

And when the next Mike will be sitting across from us.