When Steve Saint was 5 years old, his father, Nate, was speared to death by Waodani tribesmen in Ecuador. Nate was the pilot of a five member team who reached these deadly warriors. After a friendly first encounter, the tribesmen turned on these missionaries and killed them.
In the absence of his father, Steve was loved by an older man who served to be a father figure. Throughout the majority of Steve’s adult life, he has traveled with this man, served in ministry with this man, and even lived beside this man. Both families spend so much time together that it seems as if they are all one big happy family.
Steve’s father figure is a man named Mincaye — the man who killed his father.
Steve’s remaining family members eventually moved into the tribe who killed Nate. The men who did the killing became Christians. They are new creations in the sight of God and in the sight of Steve.
The men who killed Steve’s father were the men that baptized Steve. They are family, and they serve together in order to share the power of God’s forgiveness.
What are some of the more common things people are unwilling to forgive?
How would you compare those issues to the issue that Steve faced? Forgiveness is a defining characteristic of Christianity. Not only the forgiveness that we receive from Christ, but also the forgiveness that we are supposed to give and to seek.
Don’t hold onto bitterness so long that you waste your life in it. Choose to forgive today.
Here’s a video for you to see these two in action together:
Travis Agnew serves as the Lead Pastor of Rocky Creek Church in Greenville, SC. His most recent book is Just (About) Married.
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