A Fathers Love

作者 hanji

2008/11/30 Sunday 09:36:57 JST

学校でのいじめが絶えない。ひとりでは何も出来ない人が、グループになると悪いことと思いながら一緒にいじめをしてしまう。群集心理。そんな環境で勇気を出していじめを受けている人に手を差し伸べる人もいる。 学校で起きていることは、実は、大人の社会でも起きている。違う点は、大人は子供と違って逃げる道のオプションを持っている。子供は、あまりオプションが無いために追い詰められる。 勇気を持っていじめられている子供をかばう子供もいる。大人の世界にもそんな方がいる。できれば、そんな方を私は応援したい。この物語は、いじめにあった子供の家庭背景が原因となって子供の心に影響を及ぼしている。 A Fathers Love By Michael T. Powers His name was Brian, and he was a student at the small high school I attended. Brian was a special education student who was constantly searching for attention, but usually got it for the wrong reasons. Students who wanted to have some “fun” would ask, “Brian, are you the Incredible Hulk?” He would then run down the halls roaring and flexing. He was the joke of the school and was “entertainment” for those who watched. Brian, who was looking for acceptance, didn’t realize they were laughing at him and not with him. One day I couldn’t take it anymore. I told the other students I had had enough of their game and to knock it off. “Aw, come on, Mike! We’ re just having fun. Who do you think you are, anyway?” The teasing didn’t stop for long, but Brian latched onto me that day. I had stuck up for him, and now he was my buddy. Thoughts of, “What will people think of you if you are friends with Brian?” swirled in my head, but I forced them out as I realized God wanted me to treat Brian as I would want to be treated. Later that week, I invited Brian over to my house to play video games. We sat there playing video games and drinking Tang. Pretty soon, he started asking me questions like,“Hey, Mike. Where do you go to church?” I politely answered his questions, then turned my concentration back to the video games. He kept asking me questions about God, and why I was different from some of the kids at school. Finally, my girlfriend, Kristi, pulled me aside and said, “Michael, he needs to talk. How about you go down to your room where you can talk privately?” My perceptive girlfriend had picked up on the cues better than I had. As soon as we got to my room, Brian asked again, “Hey, Mike. How come you’re not like some of the other kids at school?” I wanted to tell him about the difference God had made in my life. I got out my Bible and shared John 3:16 and some verses in Romans with him. I explained that God loved him just the way he was, and that He had sent Jesus down to Earth to die on a cross, rise from the dead and make it possible for everyone, especially Brian, to spend eternity in heaven if they believed. I didn’t know if he comprehended what I was telling him, but when I finished explaining, I asked him if he wanted to pray with me. He said he would like that. We prayed together: “God, I know I’m a sinner, and that even if I were the only person on Earth, You still would have sent Your Son down to die on the cross for me and take my place. I accept the gift of salvation that you offer, and I ask that you come into my heart and take control. Thank you, Lord. Amen.” I looked at Brian and said, “Brian, if you meant those words you just prayed, where is Jesus right now?” He pointed to his heart and said, “He’s in here now.” Then he did something I will never forget as long as I live. Brian hugged the Bible to his chest, lay down on the bed and let the tears flow down the side of his cheeks. When I cry, my sobbing is very loud, but Brian’s was unearthly silent as the emotions he’d held inside let loose. Finally, he said, “Mike, do you know that the love God has for me must be like the love a husband has for his wife?” I was floored. Here was someone who had trouble comprehending things in school, but had now understood one of eternity’s great truths. He lay there for another five minutes or so as the tears continued to flow. I still remember the incredible feeling I had at that moment: a high higher than anything a substance could ever give, the high of knowing that God works miracles in everyday life. John 10:10 immediately came to mind: “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” About a week later, everything came into perspective for me. Brian really opened up to me. He explained that his dad had left him and his mom when he was five years old. As Brian stood on the porch that day, his dad told him he was leaving because he couldn’t deal with having a son like him anymore. Then he walked out of Brian’s life and was never seen again. Brian told me he had been looking for his dad ever since. Now I knew why the tears kept flowing that day in my bedroom. His search was over. He found what he had been looking for since he was five years old: a Father's love. Q1: What is your impression after reading the story? I think we, grown-ups, are responsible for raising kids at home. The family is a basic social unit and with the unit the society is composed and functioning properly. The same can be true at school. If kids have mental problems, they can be traced back to family issues. Q2: How do you understand the following, "Brian was a special education student who was constantly searching for attention"? Brain needs parent's attention at home but he is not getting it enough to cope with his mental problem. Children need attention from parents. We should listen more intently to the needs of our children. Q3: What is "a Father's love"? It can be God's Love. Someone is always caring for you even if he can not be seen and touched. You are not alone.

最終更新日 ( 2008/11/30 Sunday 09:48:50 JST )

 

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