Loving Your Enemy | Laurie Coombs

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Freedom Through Grace

Posted on: October 23rd, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 3 Comments

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“He’s doing it again,” I told my friend, Sarah, “listen to this!” I read the letter I received that afternoon from Anthony. “Why won’t he simply say ‘I did it. It was my fault. Period.’” I said. “He’s still trying to justify his actions! He committed murder! He killed my dad! There’s no justification for that!” After talking it though, I sat down and began to type my response, adrenaline pumping through my veins. I wanted to rebuke him. Set him straight. He claimed to be a Christian now. Why isn’t he repentant? Why does he keep blame shifting? I thought. I wrote, words pouring forth like flood waters out of my heart, addressing each of the issues and backing them with scripture. Oh, this is good, I thought, but I knew. This was not the response God wanted. I prayed, as I awaited direction from Jesus. Days passed and…

{Red Like Blood} Freedom Through Grace

Posted on: October 18th, 2012 by Laurie Coombs

Today, I have the honor to be guest blogging for RedLikeBlood.com. Join me there to read about the moment I was given the grace needed to forgive Anthony in my latest post entitled, Freedom Through Grace. If you’re visiting from RedLikeBlood.com, welcome! I hope you’ll take a moment, read, and stay a while… Red Like Blood is a book written by Joe Coffey and Bob Bevington, two men who have both experienced the amazing power of God’s grace in their lives, as I have. I, for one, will be reading their book. Here’s a little synopsis: …the grace of God is much more than sweet. It is also explosive, pervasive, powerful, relentless, amazing, devastating, raw, and beautiful. Grace is deadly serious stuff. Many of our encounters with grace—the real, true grace by which God changes us one step at a time—are much more like confrontations. These confrontations are jarring. They shake us…

{Love Your Enemy} Overcome Evil With Good

Posted on: October 16th, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 4 Comments

Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. – Romans 12:17-21 Overcome evil with good. As I prayed about how to apply this scripture, I realized that God calls us to treat every person––regardless of who they are and what they’ve done––with dignity and kindness. This included Anthony, the man who murdered my dad. It became increasingly clear that if I…

{Love Your Enemy} When the Path is Unclear

Posted on: September 21st, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 1 Comment

I was freaking out. There’s simply no other way to describe it. I just received that first letter from Anthony, but I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t know if I should respond. I didn’t know how to respond. Again, I knew God was leading me down this path, but I didn’t know what to do next. I needed to know His will. I needed to know what He wanted me to do. I prayed. I spoke to my husband. I called one of my best friends, all of which helped, yet still, no clarity. Then, I called one of my pastors. “Bobby, I just got a letter from the man who murdered my dad. I don’t know what to do,” I said. I gave him some background as he listened on the other end. “I just want to do what God wants me to do, but I don’t know what…

{Love Your Enemy} Pray Like the Dickens!

Posted on: September 18th, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 3 Comments

I have to be honest, when I began this journey, I understood my need to forgive and knew that forgiving would bring me to a new and better place. I wanted to forgive. The thing I did not want to do, however, was love my enemy. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again. The word “love” in the same sentence as “enemy” didn’t seem to make sense to me. What’s more, the word “love” in reference to Anthony was repulsive. Still, I knew that this is what the bible tells us to do. Jesus says, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). Yet, I didn’t quite understand it. The only insight I had on how to do this was to pray for Anthony and to do what God told me to do, which was to bring him a bible. So, out of obedience,…

{Love Your Enemy} The Letter

Posted on: September 14th, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 9 Comments

It was May 18, 2010––close to 10 years after my dad was murdered––when my husband, Travis, came home from work with a letter in his hand. “You’ve got a letter,” he said. “Thanks,” I said smiling as he handed it to me. I looked down to see a bold stamp on the backside of the envelope reading, “NORTHERN NEVADA CORRECTIONAL CENTER.” Looking up at Travis, I spoke in a faint whisper, “I gotta…I gotta go. Take care of the girls.” I ran upstairs and into my bedroom, closing and locking the door behind me. I didn’t want my girls to see me like this. I heard my daughter ask, “What’s Mommy doing?” “She just needs to take care of something,” Travis said, “Wanna help me with dinner?” “Yea!” she said with glee. I sat there, on my bed, for what seemed like hours simply holding the letter, tears pouring forth, willing…

{Forgiveness} But I’ve Already Done That!

Posted on: August 21st, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 4 Comments

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About a year after becoming a follower of Christ, I began to hear God’s gentle whisper––it’s time to forgive. Forgive? I thought. But I’ve already done that! I rarely thought about Anthony, the man who murdered my dad. And when he did enter my mind, I didn’t feel hatred or anything like that. Yet, God slowly showed me that, while I had forgiven Anthony as far as I was capable, I needed His grace to do it completely and unconditionally. … Oftentimes, we fool ourselves into thinking we have no need to forgive as we unknowingly drown in a sea of bitterness. [Tweet that] You see, I thought I was a forgiving person. I thought I had forgiven Anthony. To be honest, I didn’t think I had issues with anyone in my life. And I sure didn’t think I was bitter! But soon, God began to show me that I was constantly…

Bounty Through Obedience

Posted on: August 8th, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 16 Comments

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I knew something happened. Shaking my head, I adamantly whispered, “No. no. no. no…” But with tear-filled eyes they told me. “Laurie, your dad was murdered last night. He’s dead.” Startled, my eyes began to dart around the room, not knowing what to do with what I had been told. As my new reality began closing in around me, I felt the shackles of a heavy burden weighing me down, but there was no escape. I wanted to run away. I wanted to scream. I wanted to hit something, throw something. This isn’t happening. This isn’t happening, I thought. But it did happen. And in that moment, my life was forever changed. About a month before my dad died, he took me out to dinner. It was a welcomed treat for a poor college student. I sat across a small table from him. And after a bit of small talk, he asked…

Forgiving a Murderer

Posted on: August 2nd, 2012 by Laurie Coombs 5 Comments

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As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good. – Genesis 50:20 I read an article this afternoon telling the stories of those who died during the “Dark Night” shooting in Aurora, Colorado. Honestly, there are no words to describe a tragedy like this, so I won’t even begin to try. Twelve people died, in a matter of moments. Twelve people! The youngest of which was a six year old little girl––a girl the age of my own daughter. Not to mention the dozens of people left wounded. A tragedy like this leaves behind it a wake of destruction. It affects so many. It affects not only the victims, but the families, the friends, and even the acquaintances of those who died or were wounded. They have all been changed by this senseless act and will never be the same. Certainly, there were physical wounds that…