星空无限传媒

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The King of Kings extends grace and mercy - and so did the president

Tim Goeglein addresses the CIU student body in Shortess Chapel. (Photos by CIU Student Photographer Alexis Deason)

March 21, 2022

By Bob Holmes

Tim remembers the day he was told, 鈥淭he boss wants to see you.鈥

He didn鈥檛 want to face his boss, knowing what he had done was wrong. As a matter of fact, he was clearing out his office that day, having already turned in his resignation.

As Tim met the boss face to face, he tried to apologize for his actions, but the boss interrupted.

The boss said, 鈥淵ou鈥檙e forgiven.鈥

Tim tried to apologize again, and this time the boss said, 鈥淭im, I have known grace and mercy in my own life.鈥

On the third try Tim said, 鈥淚 categorically owe you an apology.鈥

To which the boss replied, 鈥淭im, you鈥檙e forgiven. Forgiveness is real. I鈥檓 extending to you categorical grace and mercy.鈥

鈥檚 boss was for whom he had worked as an advisor for nearly eight years.

While serving as the deputy director of the White House Office of Public Liaison, Goeglein was also writing a column for his hometown newspaper in Fort Wayne, Indiana. He received an email from journalist one day asking him if he had plagiarized a recent column. 听

鈥淚t was true,鈥 Goeglein admitted to the student body of 星空无限传媒 as he retold the story during a Chapel service. 鈥淣ot only had I plagiarized that column, I had plagiarized many other columns 鈥. I knew what I was doing.鈥澨

These days, Goeglein serves as vice president of External and Government Relations for the ministry based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. But the story of his days at the White House are not just one of a forgiving president, but of the dangers of pride that led to his exit from Washington, D.C. He had forgotten God, and thought he could do no wrong.

鈥淒eep, toxic, poisonous pride had finally caught up with me,鈥 Geoglein said.

He also noted that his crisis came from a failure of his own making, 鈥渦ltimately hurting deeply those I care about most.鈥

鈥淎bove all, above all, hurting the relationship between Jesus Christ and myself, 鈥 Geoglein emphasized.

Referencing the season of Lent, Goeglein added, 鈥淚 came to share with you, the power of the limitless grace and mercy and love of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, and the season where we are all heading to Jerusalem together.鈥

Goeglein鈥檚 experiences in the White House are detailed in his book, published by Lifeway in 2011.听

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