Forgiveness: Student of the Month

Bless the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits,
3 who forgives all your iniquity,
who heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
5 who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's....

9 He will not always chide,
nor will he keep his anger forever.
10 He does not deal with us according to our sins,
nor repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
Psalms 103:2-12 (6-8 are missing on here)

Student of the month. Big honor, no doubt, I mean you get the chance to eat with the principal. Hello, cool points.

Usually the student of the month is picked based on excellent conduct and grades, all the qualifications of ---grade A student. As we (my mentor teacher and I) were discussing it for next month all the students who would generally qualify by these standards were named. However, the entire time, I just wanted one specific student to receive it. I was a bit afraid to tell my mentor my thoughts, because the student didn't necessarily meet the requirements. His effort in the classroom and his willingness to learn inspite of his difficulty with school work was inspiring? humbling? to me. It was his neediness that made me want him to have it.

And then, I braved it and mentioned his name. After thinking through conduct, she agreed! EEE. soooo. stinkin. pumped.

Several days later I was working, when I randomly remembered an incident from the previous semester. He had gotten into "big trouble mister."  But I had forgotten-----completely forgotten until that moment. I just saw his potential, love all my students so stinkin much, and knew this could potentially encourage him to keep perservering. To help him know he was noticed! and was so eager for him to have this honor that his performance never crossed my mind.

Jesus helped me remember the incident briefly to teach me. So I could realize...
 
 HE FORGETS. BELOVED,  HE FORGETS...  as far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us. (Psalms 103:12).... He has seated us in the heavenly places. our lives have been hidden with Christ. You have an inheritance that is greater than you could imagine, unfathomable. He loves you so fiercely. His banner over you is love (song of solomon 2:4). His kindness leads you to repentance... and then He forgets. He doesn't hang it over our head racking on the guilt, dealing with us according to our sins, or repaying us according to our inquities. FORGIVEN. Do we really understand this? Do we walk in the forgiveness He has offered or the forgiveness others offer us?

My student was student of the month, seated with the principal---forgiven.  We are child (not orphan) of the King, seated at His banqueting table---forgiven.


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