Forgiveness | Laurie Coombs

Archive for the ‘Forgiveness’ Category

It’s Been Thirteen Years

Posted on: August 6th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 6 Comments

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My dad died thirteen years ago yesterday. It’s hard to believe thirteen years have passed. It’s all still a bit surreal. My life seems to be somewhat of a paradox. Tragedy weaves throughout the storyline of my life, yet God has given me a good life––full of many joys, many blessings, and yes, much heartache. Honestly, I miss my dad. I think I always will. But my dad’s absence is always a bit more real on the anniversary of his death. Three years ago, on August 5th, I found myself writing my fourth letter to Anthony. All doors had closed. I wasn’t going to be able to visit him in prison as I was hoping to. Yet, I was committed to pursuing forgiveness and peace through our correspondence. In my letter, I wrote: Ironically, I’m writing you on the tenth anniversary of my dad’s death. While in a way, it does…

Living Joyfully Free Radio Interview

Posted on: July 29th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 3 Comments

Author and Speaker, Lisa Buffaloe, recently asked me to share my testimony on her radio program, Living Joyfully Free. If you’re interested, head over to her website to listen to my interview. (Just as a bit of a heads up: The program lasts about one hour, so be sure to set aside some time or listen while engaging in some other “mindless” activity.) Praying you are blessed this Monday morning! Laurie

{Lessons Learned} Overcoming Evil with Good Words

Posted on: July 12th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 3 Comments

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Jesus made it clear. If I were to have any impact on Anthony (the man who murdered my dad), I would have to live out the commands found in Romans 12. Jesus spoke: Repay no one evil for evil. Love your enemy. Overcome evil with good. Yet still, the questions plagued me: How? How do I overcome evil with good? How do I love Anthony? What does it look like? And then it became clear. I was to love Anthony through my words. Words hold power. As Jeff Goins recently wrote, “Words are powerful, painful, awful, and amazing tools. They can hurt, help, hinder, and heal.” I wanted my words to be used for good. I wanted them to bring light to a very dark part of my past. So when I sat down to write Anthony for the first time, I chose kindness over my feelings. I felt a strong conviction that…

Is It Time to Right Some Wrongs?

Posted on: July 9th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs

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There comes a time that we need to right the wrongs we’ve committed against others. [Tweet that] I was a baby Christian when this time came for me. Jesus whispered the words “it’s time to forgive,” and I began to search my soul. Anthony––the man who murdered my dad––was the obvious one that needed my attention, but there were others I needed to forgive as well. My unforgiving heart ran deep. There was the girl I hated in high school. There was the man who witnessed for the defense in my dad’s murder trial yet had once called my dad friend. There was my dad’s ex-wife. And there were even some family members. Apparently, this German-Irish girl knew how to hold onto grudges. But it was time to let them go. [Tweet that] As I did, I was given perspective, and I began to see how my behavior contributed to the issues…

{Lessons Learned} Do You See As You Ought?

Posted on: June 25th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 4 Comments

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I was a wreck. “I’ve spent my entire life trying to achieve and set goals for myself,” I told my husband, Travis, “and I’ve hinged all happiness on the achievement of those goals only to continuously fall short of true happiness. It’s like there’s this emptiness inside, but I don’t know how to make it go away!” I felt empty, defeated, depressed, and anxious. And I had no answers. It was a very dark place. Over and over I kept saying, I just want to feel peace. I just want peace. Yet, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t save myself. [Tweet that] Blind and Paralyzed Then, I had a dream. I dreamt I became blind and paralyzed. And when I awoke I was perplexed and greatly disturbed. I didn’t know what it meant. Perhaps it means nothing, I tried to convince myself. But still, I couldn’t shake it. Yet, it wasn’t…

{Lessons Learned} I Am Not a Victim

Posted on: June 18th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 9 Comments

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I never intended to be a victim. Shortly after my dad was murdered, my family and I were referred to the victim services department at the courthouse. It was the first time we were called victims. But honestly, I didn’t consider myself to be the victim. My dad was the victim. But somehow, I think the victim thing crept in, and my dad’s death became the defining moment of my life. I didn’t want to be defined by this tragedy, but I was. I became the girl whose dad was murdered. I hated being this person. I hated being a murder victim’s daughter, but as far as I saw it, it’s who I was. I couldn’t escape it. I guess I am a victim, I finally concluded. At this time in my life, I was very much in the world. I didn’t know God, and I certainly wasn’t following Jesus yet….

{LeannePenny.com} Can Jesus Really Redeem Our Losses?

Posted on: June 14th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs

Today, I’m over at Leanne Penny’s blog, sharing my story, focusing upon loss and redemption. Leanne has quite a story herself. She writes about loss, grief, grace, and hope. I know you’ll find her to be a source of strength along your own journey, so go ahead, check her out! But here’s the question I pose today on Leanne’s blog: Can Jesus really redeem our losses? It’s an appropriate question, I think, one that I struggled with for quite some time. And I hope you’ll join me as I attempt to answer this question in my post titled Can Jesus Really Redeem Our Losses? If you’re joining me from Leanne’s blog, I’m happy you’re here. Welcome! I hope you’ll take a moment and stay a while. One More Thing Okay, I have only one more thing to share, so stick with me! Since writing my post for Leanne, God has given me…

{Lessons Learned} Abiding In Christ – We Can’t Do Anything Apart from Jesus

Posted on: June 11th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 14 Comments

And there's nothing we can do that will have significant, lasting impact apart from God. [Tweet that] First John 4:9 tells us, "In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him." Jesus came that we might live. Truly live. Not endure. Not get by. But live fully, bountifully.

I camped out in the fifteenth chapter of the gospel of John for quite some time during my correspondence with Anthony, the man who murdered my dad. I knew I couldn’t do it on my own. I knew nothing of any value could be accomplished through my endeavor apart from Jesus. For apart from me you can do nothing. I read these words over and over. Jesus says, I am the vine. Abide in me. Abide. What does it look like to abide? I looked it up. Abide – to stay; to wait; to remain fixed in some state or condition; to endure; to sustain; to submit to… Abide in me. I clung close to the cross, I devoured God’s Word, I prayed like never before, I got down, prostrate before our mighty God and learned what it meant to abide in Jesus. And as I did, it became increasingly…

{Lessons Learned} Your Faith Requires Action

Posted on: May 31st, 2013 by Laurie Coombs

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I’m seeing that the Christian life is NOT a life of passivity but a life of choices empowered by the Holy Spirit. – My prayer journal, May 13, 2010 The Christian life is not one marked by passivity, but instead, it requires that we step out in faith, empowered by the Holy Spirit, to do whatever it is Jesus calls us to. Following Jesus means that we get off the couch and do something. [tweet that] When I first became a Christian, (only about a year before I was called on my crazy journey with Anthony) I was under the impression that Christianity should be characterized more by a “let go and let God” theology than one that requires action. But, when Jesus called me to love and forgive the very man who murdered my dad, this paradigm was shattered. I was presented with commands. Forgive. Love your enemy. How…

{Lessons Learned} An Intentional Life

Posted on: May 28th, 2013 by Laurie Coombs 1 Comment

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Let all that you do be done in love. – 1 Corinthians 16:14 All that we do should be motivated by the love of God. As you may have noticed, I’ve been hung-up on this topic lately. Many of my most recent posts have had this theme, or a variation of it, threaded throughout them. But this has been a mega-theme of my life recently. Honestly, I have to confess. I think I’ve been missing the mark on this one for quite some time now, but God’s giving me grace, and He’s renewing the love I had at first, which I am unbelievably grateful for. It All Begins With Love As I’ve mentioned time and time again, my journey with Anthony began with God’s whisper, showing me my need to forgive. But then He told me I needed to love my enemy. You see, it all began with love. All the craziness that happened, all the tears,…