Forgiveness From the Soul
Chapter 2-1
Debrala and Lee were startled when the video cube they were watching suddenly stopped. Bal had entered the room unnoticed, and was sitting beside a weeping Shana, doing his best to comfort her.
“It’s all right, Shanee, it’s all right,” assured her husband. “Let it out, love. Let it out,” he kept telling her, pulling her close to him. Leeamar, Shana’s grand daughter, was confused over her grandmother’s reaction to the video cube they were watching, and looked to her mother for an explanation. Tears were also falling down her mother’s cheeks, and Lee went to her.
“What is it, Mom? Why are you and Gramma crying? It was only a sad story. Wasn’t it?” asked the teen. Deb looked at Lee and took her hand.
“Lee, I’ve told you before that your great grandmother Debora was killed in an accident. Honey,” she hesitated. “Honey, that blond woman killed by that intoxed man was Debora Lea, wife of Toma Lea, the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces of Republica at the time, and who later became President of Republica. That was your Gramma Shana’s mom, Lee—your great grandmother. We’ve never let you hear this tragic story, Lee., that was recorded by your Great Grampa Toma. For some reason that’s what he wanted, so we always honored his wish. And I think the pain of her loss when she was only sixteen really has never left my Mom, perhaps until now,” said Debrala, softly, still sobbing herself. “At least I hope so,” she added. ”She was too young to have lost her Mom in that horrible accident that could have been avoided.”
“Mom, let’s stop this story now. We don’t need to watch the rest of it. These memories are going to be too painful for all of us, I’m afraid,” said Deb.
“I agree, Gramma,” said Lee. “We know what happened to the ‘prodigal son’ in God’s Word. We know that his father forgave him and welcomed him home, and that his older brother was jealous of his father’s attention to a son that had been rebellious. That’s the rest of the story that Great Grampa Toma was going to tell, isn’t it?”
“Not exactly, Lee,” said Shana, trying to wipe away her tears on her husband’s shirtsleeve. “That’s not at all what happened, my dear Lee. Even your mom doesn’t really know all of the rest of this story, because for many years my father refused to talk about it to anyone, even to us, and told us to never talk about it. From this point on, Toma’s ‘parable’ is much different than the one from God’s Word, but the end results were just as wonderful. I want you to see what happened in the lives of two men. One was always a great servant of our Savior who became bitter for many years, and let grief and hatred control him. The other man was a servant of the evil one, who finally yielded to the discipline of the One who really did love him. That One wasn’t that young man’s physical father, but was the One who really mattered.”
Chapter 2-2
“Mom,” said Deb, “are you sure you want to continue? We can watch the rest of the story tomorrow, when you feel better.”
“I’m fine, now, Deb. Sorry for the tears, but I haven’t watched this vid for a very long time. You remember what I told you earlier, don’t you? My father, Toma Lea, who was the Supreme Commander of the Military Forces of Republica at that time, wasn’t the only one who was bitter and seethed with hatred. It affected my brothers, and me, also. Even my brother, Jon, who was a pastor of a big church at the time. was bitter, although he recovered much faster through the prayers of his immediate family and all the people at his church. My brother Jorg, and I, let hatred for this young man who killed our mother control us for a time, I’m sorry to admit. My father did, also for many yeas, but he always concealed his feelings better than we did, at least when he was with other people, and never spoke about it to us or anyone else, as far as I know. Let’s watch the rest, Honey. Go ahead, Bal, restart the video,” Shana requested.
PART 2 OF THE PARABLE OF KONNER FULLER CONTINUES:
“The blond woman’s husband was notified at his office, and told to come at once to the MedCenter. Upon his arrival, he was greeted by several physicians and officials of the Center, and was taken to a private room where he was notified of the circumstances of his wife’s accident, and was told that she had died away from her injuries. His grief was intense, and the physicians and nurses could only watch in helplessness as a man who was known and respected by his countrymen, a man who was one of the most powerful people in Republica at the time, was reduced by the immensity of his loss to complete powerlessness. Several nurses took him to his wife’s body, which had been cleaned as well as possible. They left that room in tears, unable to sustain their own professionalism as they witnessed the breakdown of that man’s life.
“A few days later, after the memorial service for the lovely blond woman, her husband, her children, her elderly parents, her elderly aunt, and the blond woman’s four grand children, gathered around her grave behind Andria First Church, and with great difficulty said their farewells to her. The others eventually left to return to their homes, but the man refused to leave. His sons, in their own grief, did their best to make their father leave with them, but he refused. Reluctantly they left him sitting on the ground next to his wife’s flower-covered coffin. He sat there all that night, and into the next day, weeping and talking with
his dead wife, refusing to let the caretakers of the grave place complete their sad task of burying her. Finally, the pastor of the Old White Church, as it was affectionately still called, led the man to his own nearby residence, where he and his wife did their best to console their dear friend.
Chapter 2-3
“At the same time, Konner Fuller was fighting for his life in the MedCenter. His crushed and battered body barely responding to the advanced medical procedures and equipment, it was two weeks after his accident that he regained consciousness, immobilized with steel bars, his neck broken, and paralyzed from the waist down. He opened his eyes and saw his father talking with two men who appeared to be physicians.
“Father”, he barely managed to say. He tried to move his arm toward his father, but it barely moved. His father said something to the two men, came over and looked at Konner, then left the room, saying nothing to his son. The next day his mother came to visit him, and spent most of the time reading to him from one of her newest books. She left at sundown, telling him how much she loved him, informing him that she and his father had separated and would soon divorce, and assuring him that she would buy him a new vehicle when he recovered. He was barely able to ask about the driver of the vehicle he hit.
“She didn’t make it, Kon. She was killed in the accident. It could have happened to anyone, Kon. Don’t let it bother you now. Oh, your father said he’s been very busy at his job, and doesn’t know when he’ll get a chance to visit. Don’t worry. We both still love you. Well, I’ve got to go. See you soon, Kon.” She kissed his forehead and left. To this day, he has never seen her again.
THE PARABLE CONTINUES: LIVES ARE CHANGED
“Over the next few weeks the man gradually resumed his familiar life and his work, but his soul was troubled, for a part of him had been ripped away by a follower of the evil one, and he increasingly questioned his Heavenly Father as to why He had permitted this tragedy to happen. Gradually, over the following year, the man allowed his constant grief to fill his soul with hatred for the young man and bitterness that he had survived the accident, while his beloved wife had not. He knew that this hatred for that young man was consuming him, and was contrary to God’s command to “love your enemies”, but his hatred fed upon itself, and was slowly consuming him. He knew this was happening to him, and was wrong, but he was unable—or perhaps, down deep, unwilling to banish that comforting hate.
“There finally came a time, exactly three years after the death of the man’s wife, that his Heavenly Father began to deal with him and begin the process of revealing to him His reasons for taking her home to Himself. One stormy night in the old grave place behind First Church the man’s grief was lovingly and
miraculously ended, as he was assured that in eternity he would see his beloved wife again, that he would be provided another to comfort him on Tera, for he still had unfinished work to do. (This story has been unfolded separately as “THE COMFORT OF SORROW”).
Chapter 2-4
“But while the man’s grief disappeared after his “encounter” with God in the Old Grave Place, he still harbored bitterness and hatred in his heart against Konner Fuller, the young man who had torn asunder his life. He often tried to tamp down his bitterness and hate, but it kept resurfacing despite his prayers. And so, for the next eight years the man struggled with this bitterness and hate in his soul, as he battled with God’s command for his children to forgive their enemies. The man didn’t realize that The Triune God was about to provide a lesson that he should already have learned.
“In the year A.D. 2712, this man, Toma Jon Lea, was among the most powerful people on Tera, for he had become President of his country, The United Republics of the East (Republica.). His people admired and respected him, he had a wife who loved him and was deeply loved in return, and his country was at peace with its long-time adversary. What this man and most of his countrymen considered a direct miracle from God had occurred only a few years before in the land that had been closed to Christian belief for centuries. The man rejoiced over the opening of the formerly enemy country to the Gospel of love and salvation. He was having great difficulty, however, in opening his own heart and emptying it of the hatred and bitterness it still harbored. One day, at the end of a hectic day, the man got on his knees and began weeping, imploring his Savior to take away the bitterness and hate that had held him in its malignant grip for over eleven years.
“So it was, in God’s special providence that the very NEXT day, as the man was at his home in Barg City, he received a message from his Personal Appointments Secretary, informing him that a person named Konner Fuller was requesting a meeting with him before he returned to Richmon. The man hesitated for many seconds, so long that his secretary inquired if he had heard her. She repeated the message, and waited while the battle taking place in this man’s heart was raging. Finally, he told his assistant to grant an appointment for the next day, at 11:30 a.m.
“The next day, at exactly 11:30 a.m., one of the man’s Senior Advisors announced to his President that his visitor had arrived. With his chest pounding, this most powerful man in all the land told him to admit the young visitor to his office, uncertain if he truly wanted to meet with him or not. As the door closed behind him, Konner Fuller, assisted by a cane, limped to the desk of the President of Republica, and looked deeply into the eyes of the man whose life he had demolished eleven years previously. Both men looked at each other a fee minutes, tears starting to drop down the cheeks of both of them. But neither spoke at first, uncertainty, embarrassment, and the past making it difficult to say anything. But the Triune God had another goal for this meeting.
Chapter 2-5
“The younger man saw a handsome man with graying hair, a face mostly unwrinkled except around his eyes---a face he had seen countless times on the telyeye, and in his dreams, or rather, his darktales. The older man saw a younger man who had difficulty walking, whose hair was turning gray despite his youth, and whose face betrayed the torment of his life. The older man activated his recordo so this unexpected confrontation would be preserved, and he explained, at this point in his video cube recorded ‘parable’, that he was going to play this video recording at this time, for his family members.
REC: “It was kind of you to see me, Mr. President. I have difficulty traveling long distances, and I wanted to see you here in Barg City. I--------I’ve been trying to find the courage to stand before you for the past four years, Sir, but I just couldn’t. I just couldn’t, until now.” The younger man hesitated, searching for some kind of encouragement on his President’s face. He continued: “The Holy Spirit has been working on me for some time, Sir, but I’ve just been too--- too---cowardly to face you.” The young man put out his hand, and for the briefest of time the older man seemed to hesitate, but finally their hands grasped each other, firmly and with confidence. Tears were dropping from the eyes of both men, but neither seemed to notice that, nor did either man try to wipe them from his eyes.
“Come sit over here with me, Konner” requested the President. They went to a corner of the office that was furnished with large couches and low tables, plush thick carpets with strange designs on them. Each man sank into the softness of his own couch . One end of the room was dominated by vista windows that overlooked the Tomak River, which flowed tranquilly at the bottom of the hill. At this moment in time there was little tranquility in either of their hearts, however. On one table was a frost pitcher containing a red orange colored liquid, with slices of lemons and limes floating in it.
“I’ve become very fond of ‘icey tea’, Konner. The people in Mamooda and Aztlan have enjoyed it for ages, but we in Republica are just now becoming familiar with this and other Mamooden beverages. Can I pour you a glass?”
“Yes, please, Mr. President. I’ve never had cold tea poured over ice.” He watched as the President of his country poured two glasses of the frigid liquid and gave him one. The slightly sweetened beverage was more refreshing than any cold softy he had drunk in the past, its somewhat acrid flavor enhanced by a hint of lemon. Each man drank a little before turning his attention back to the other.
“Did you enjoy that, Konner?”, asked the President. “I’ve always been partial to hot chaklate, but in this warm weather icey tea is very refreshing, isn’t it?”
Chapter 2-6
“It is, sir. It’s really delicious,” replied the young man. He placed his glass in its holder on the table, looking away from his host, uncertain if he could continue. Tears began flowing down his cheeks again.
“I believe you had something you wanted to say to me, Konner. Is that correct?” asked the older man, jut barely in control of his emotions. Somewhat reluctantly, the young man turned his gaze directly into the face of the President of his country.
“Mr. President,” he began slowly and with difficulty, “I’m not the same uncaring, evil person I was once. That man was killed in that terrible tragedy eleven years ago, along with your dear wife, Debora. For almost four years I’ve been reading God’s Word with several Christian couples, only one of which knows my past. They’ve been discipling me since I got out of provincial prison, where the court sent me after I recovered sufficiently. I was prosecuted automatically for the crime of driving while intoxed, and for the killing of your wife. I met a decent Christian guard in that prison who started me on the correct road and did a lot to get me off the bad path I was on. I’ll always be grateful to him for that. He put me in touch with several couples from his church after I was released on probation. That was almost four years ago. During that time I met and married a nice Christian girl who is a member of Andria First Church. I’ve been attending there off and on for over a year. I’ve even seen you there a few Sabbaths, and I wanted to speak to you, but……” The young man hesitated, tears dropping down his cheeks, his voice almost failing him.
“Go on, Konner,” said the President, his own tears blurring his vision and making it difficult for him to speak. “Please, go on”, sobbed the most powerful man in Republica.
“Mr. President, our God knows that if I could exchange my life this instant and undo what I did, and let her live instead of me, I would gladly do so, for I’ve been tormented by her death. I know I have terribly wronged you by killing your Debora, and---and---I ask that you forgive me for what I did to you. I know there’s no reason for you to do so, but I had to stand before you and ask you to forgive me.” He looked at President Lea, who was again on the edge of uncontrollable grief, and asked, “Is it possible for you to forgive me for the evil I did to you?” The young man was sobbing softly by this time, and the President was wiping tears out of his own eyes, momentarily unable to speak0—until he heard the voice in his mind. He stood up and stepped before Konner, being
suddenly reminded of that rainy night beside Debora’s grave eight years before and who it was that changed him, having tamped down the grief that was once again trying to resurface in his mind, and only barely able to do so. Finally President Lea spoke
Chapter 2-7
“I rejoice to hear that you are now one of our Savior’s children, Konner. For many years I have been harboring bitterness and hatred against you in my heart, and there was a time, not very long ago, that I would never have considered forgiving you. But my brother, there is a reason now for me to forgive you, for I’ve been commanded by our Saviour to do so if you ask it of me.” He grasped the hand of the younger man, and pulled him up off the couch.
“Konner Fuller, I do forgive you for that evil thing you did in another life. You are no longer God’s enemy, and He commands us to forgive our enemies, and I willingly and truly do so.” With tears flowing from both men, they hugged each other for several minutes, sobbing softly but saying nothing.
Finally, the President spoke. “Konner, have you joined First Church yet, or have you already joined with another congregation?”
“I want to join tomorrowam, Sir”, responded the younger man, “but I need a Spiritual Mentor to stand with me. It must be another man, but so far no one has volunteered to do so. Most don’t know me very well, yet,” he added softly.
“Konner, you be at the 10 a.m. service. I guarantee that you’ll have an SM to stand with you. I’d like to meet your wife. Did she come with you today?”
“Yes Sir, she did. She’s waiting in your common room, while I talked with you privately. Karla’s a great admirer of yours, Sir. And she does know all about my past, and why I came here today. You know, we’ve never been in Lea House before, Sir. It’s so big and beautiful.”
“The President smiled, and said, “It’s been made beautiful by all the wonderful people who have lived here over the centuries, and especially by my wife, Melann. Let’s find Karla and go and meet Melann. She has a mideat ready for us to enjoy. I hope you’re hungry.”
SO ENDS TOMA’S RECORDING OF HIS MEETING WITH KONNER .FULLER
So it was, in the fullness of God’s time, that the President’s life was changed, as the hate and bitterness of the past were finally removed from his heart, and the forgiveness so desperately sought by a troubled young man was finally granted. The next day, Sunday the Sabbath, at the 10 a.m. service of First Church, Konner
Fuller stood in front of a packed room, and as requested by Pastor Evans, told his full story. When he got to the part where he identified himself as the intoxicated man who had killed Debora Lea, there were audible gasps from most of the congregation, for Debora had been greatly loved by them. By the time he told of his meeting with President Lea the day before, and how President Lea had forgiven him, there were few dry eyes in the entire congregation
Chapter 2-8
“Pastor Evans announced that Konner Fullar had just preached as fine a sermon as they might have heard from him, but reminded his flock that a Spiritual Mentor was still needed to stand beside Konner—a man who would be willing to be available to the young man if he was needed for spiritual or worldly advice—a man who would not hesitate to offer correction should it be necessary. The pastor asked if there was a man willing to do so. Suddenly, from the back of the audience, a voice called out: “I am”.
“The tears of the congregation gave way to smiles and murmurings of admiration, as President Toma Lea walked down the center aisle, past the old fireplaces of Rober Tely, and stood beside Konner Fuller.
“I’m willing,” the President announced. He and Konner hugged each other, and Konner’s wife, Karla, came and stood beside both men, her tears giving way to smiles as she also hugged her President. In the audience that day, as arranged for by Pastor Evans, was Konner’s father, Samwell, from whom he had been estranged for many years. He approached his son, weeping, and asked for his forgiveness for being an uncaring and unloving parent. Konner’s tears and smiles as the men hugged each other verified that forgiveness had been granted.
“Later that day, at Lea House, father and son, Toma and Melann, and many from First Church enjoyed a wonderful dinner, and there was much singing of hymns and much praise to God for what He had brought about.”
THUS ENDS PART 2 “FORGIVENESS FROM THE SOUL”--OF THE PARABLE OF KONNER FULLER.
“The room lights came back on as the video ended.
“Mom, that was the best parable I’ve ever heard that didn’t come from God’s Word,” declared Debrala. “Did you ever meet Konner?” she asked.
“Yes, Deb, my brothers and I met Konner and his wife one time. It was on the 18th of Summerlate, in A.D. 2714, in Richmon. It was the eve that the Senate of Republica awarded the Senatorial Medal of Honor to my father. I was the one who placed it around his neck. But Melann had, unknown to the rest of us, invited Konner and his wife, Karla, to the ceremony in the Great Hall of the Senate. We met them, and they sat there with the rest of the family.
Chapter 2-9
“Just before we all went in to the Senate, Melann told us that she had invited someone to represent Debora Makall Lea and her family, but since there were none of Debora’s family members left alive, she had asked Konner Fuller and his wife to represent Debora. So it was that on the eve that my father was presented the highest honor his country could bestow on him, one of those in attendance was the man who had taken Debora’s life long before. That’s the wonderful kind of woman that Melann was, my loves,” Shana smiled. “And that’s the parable of the prodigal son of Barg City that my father told about in his vid cube recording so many years ago.”
“Shanee, what happened to Konner?”, asked Bal
“Daddy told me that a year or so after we met Konner and Karla in Richmon, they moved to the northern part of Nenglan Province, and worked with a mission group that was ministering to a local large tribe of Nativists. He and Daddy stayed in touch for a long time, as I recall. As far as I know, he and his wife are sill up there, serving our Lord”.
