EMBRACING MY FATHER'S KILLER. Pts. 1-3

Robert Godwin spent his Easter weekend fishing, having lunch with his middle-aged children, and indulging in a favorite hobby, strolling the Cleveland streets with a shopping bag looking for the aluminum cans he so often collected.

As Godwin, 74, was walking just south of Interstate 90 on Sunday afternoon he was approached by Steve Stephens, who police say pulled out a camera phone, and then a gun, and murdered Godwin. His murderer’s only excuse, the recent estrangement from his girlfriend.

The manhunt for Stephens has now expanded out of Ohio and into four other states, Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, and Michigan; after the brazen homemade video of his victim’s execution was posted on his Facebook page.

I watched an interview on CNN tonight between Anderson Cooper and three of Mr. Godwin’s adult children. As the result of a question regarding how they were holding up, and their perspectives about the person who took the life of their father, one daughter responded, (paraphrased)

“Our dad taught us how to love God. He taught us how to fear God. We hold absolutely no animosity against the man who took our father’s life. We just want to wrap our arms around the man, and say, ‘We forgive you. And our father forgives you.’ It’s what our parents taught us. They didn’t just talk it. They lived it. We would ask our dad, ‘Are you really going to forgive that man?,’ (referring to this or that person). And he would say, ‘Yes. I am. It’s what our Savior would do.’ It’s only because we know God that we are able to love our father’s murderer and pray for him.”

And with this, her two other two siblings nodded their heads in agreement.

Pt. 2

“We would just like to wrap our arms around the man and say, ‘We forgive you. And our father forgives you’”

And as I sat listening to the interview, I could only shake my head in abject amazement.

Can we say, “Amazing Grace?”

So much like the words and attitude of Christ, Himself, as He hung on the cross, and submitted Himself to the vindictiveness and hypocrisy of man, and the will of His Father.

“Father forgive them for they know not what they do.” (Luke 23:34)

Robert taught his children well, and in words, and in “so many words” he taught them to model their lives after the Savior, as he also modeled his own life after the God of the universe; who put on flesh and dwelt among us.

The Apostle Paul admonished us to,

“Let me be your example here, my brothers. Let my example be the standard by which you can tell who are the genuine Christians among those about you. For there are many, of whom I have told you before and tell you again now, even with tears, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ. These men are heading for utter destruction - their god is their own appetite, their pride is in what they should be ashamed of, and this world is the limit of their horizon.

But we are citizens of Heaven. Our outlook goes beyond this world to the hopeful expectation of the Savior who will come from Heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will re-make these wretched bodies of ours to resemble His own glorious body, by that power of His which makes Him the Master of everything that is.” (Philippians 3:17-21)

Pt. 3

“Let me be your example here.”

A verse which can be “boiled down” to two words.

“Copy me.”

As a formal mentor figure I appreciate these words; perhaps far more than the average man on the street. As someone who sets himself out as a teacher, helper and encourager, I must be not only willing, but able to also say, “Copy me.”

If we are to believe the testimony of Robert Gibson’s children, and if their words and example provide us anything to emulate, we can be sure that he left them an excellent example.

I love the New Testament book of 1^st Peter, and one verse in particular.

“We serve a God who judges men according to their actions.” (1^st Peter 1:17)

“We would just like to wrap our arms around the man and say,

…‘We forgive you. And our father forgives you’”

Amazing words. Amazing grace.

Yes, I think Robert taught his children well.

By William McDonald, PhD. Excerpt from "(Mc)Donald's Daily Diary" Vol. 53. Copyright pending

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