Seventy Times Seven

When peace, like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou has taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul.

Matthew 18: 21-22 NIV
"Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, 'Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?' Jesus answered, 'I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.'"

Six at-risk students stood around my Smartboard studying literary terms preparing for a graduation test. In the process, I learned more about the holes in their hearts than I think they learned from me that afternoon.

One senior boy had so much pain inside him he couldn't focus on the literary terms we were working on.  His friends consoled him by adding fuel to his hatred.

"He had no right to do you like he did." 

"Don't you talk to him if he calls you."

It's tough to know how far to go into the lives of students and their personal problems, but as I observed the hard lines on this boy's face and the girls who were advising him, I realized they had all been hurt by adults.

Finally, I could hold my tongue no longer.

"You know. Until you forgive him, you won't have any peace inside you," I spoke quietly, uninvited. I was the adult in the room. The outsider.

The students turned on me. They glared at me assuming I didn't understand pain, betrayal, rejection, abandonment, a knife in my back.

"You don't understand the problems our generation faces.
We have serious problems. We can't just forgive. We have to get even."

I held my ground.

"If you don't forgive, you will only make yourself a bitter person. Over time, the hatred you possess for that person will taint your life. You must let go of the hurt and the hate and forgive. It's the only way you will be free to live your own life. Everyone in the world has a broken heart. You are not alone."

The boy listened quietly to me. I think he was almost convinced in the truth of my words. The girls refused to pay attention to me.

The boy spoke quietly when the girls moved away from us.
"It's too soon. The hurt is too great. I don't know how to forgive him."

I whispered to him. He looked me in the eyes for the first time that hour. "I don't know what he did to you, but I'll pray you'll be able to forgive him one day for your peace of mind."

The bell rang. They left for their next class.
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Lord, help these children learn to forgive the ones who have hurt them, so they can be free of the pain and move forward with their lives.