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Miracle in the Court Room -- Great Forgiveness

A fourteen year old boy who had suffered extreme abuse since he was a baby had snapped and murdered his abusers, his father and stepmother and stepsister. He had been found guilty of murder as an adult, which meant he would have to spend the rest of his life in prison.

At the sentencing hearing, the judge ruled that the boy was amenable to change, and therefore sentenced him not as an adult, but as a juvenile. This means the boy will get counseling and be out when he is 21.

Maybe the judge's humane decision itself was a miracle. But there is more.

When the verdict was read, one of the defense counsels cried. She didn't cry because they had won. She cried because she was happy the boy would not have to spend the rest of his life in prison.

The other defense counsel, when interviewed after the hearing, said: "We are entering a new age." This from an attorney on national TV.

Now I have saved the most wonderful miracle for last.

Guess who was one of the staunchest supporters of the boy during the whole time? The father of the murdered girl.

He and his wife were happy that the boy was sentenced as a juvenile rather than an adult. They were overjoyed, and they cheered. The father of the murdered girl said he would like to see something good come out of his daughter's death, and that was to see this boy freed. The father further said that maybe his daughter's death will be instrumental in bringing attention and help to abused children and prevent other killings in the future. He also said that his daughter's fourteen-year old murderer was a good boy who had been pushed too far, and he was betting on the boy to rise above the tragedy and make a good life for himself.

This father wasn't trying to be a good man. He wasn't trying to forgive. This is how he saw it. This is where he was. What a triumph over grief. It was beautiful.

It's really true. A new age is upon us.