“Many are the plans in a person’s heart; but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.” Proverbs 19:21 (NIV)
In the past few years, much has been said regarding reconciliation between residential school survivors and the government. I held all
that rhetoric at arm’s length until last year. Two incidents opened up feelings that were hidden away under years of denial and suspicion.
The first incident was the recounting of my Day School experience. Memories of small children housed in a one-room school with rows of desks for grades 1-6. Everything that happened in that room was a common experience. For many of us, it was our first experience with a non-indigenous person. She was very cruel, subjecting us to corporal punishment and inhuman acts such as refusing bathroom privileges, until it was too late for comfort or pride.
The second incident was hearing about the discovery of 200-plus graves in the Kamloops Indian Residential School grounds. I had heard of these stories back while I was in residential school in Williams Lake, but it was an unfathomable horror, so I pushed the thought
out of my mind.
I recount these things to give a capsule of the hearts of a broken people needing reconciliation. Even after many years of living the Christian life, I experienced a deep sadness in realizing that human beings can commit such vile acts out of their own selfish desires. Even if their initial purpose was for good, their methods were not godly.
For “true reconciliation,” one must first be reconciled to God. Romans 10:9-10 says: “If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation.” (NASB)
God in heaven, I pray for the hurting people of the residential school era. I ask that you would open their spiritual eyes to see You.
– Theresa Bose
Council Fire is a collaboration with Intertribal Life Ministries and Native Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.
The Council Fire Daily Devotional Book Set is available on the Intertribal Life Ministries website.
Learn more about Council Fire at councilfire365.org