by Danielle Wagner
CEDAR FALLS (KWWL) -- Sitting before the congregation at Prairie Lakes Church in Cedar Falls, Aaron Thomas spoke of the day he learned his father, Ed Thomas, was shot.
Aaron said he first got a call at 8:07 a.m. June 24, 2009. A call he'll never forget.
He said part of moving on isn't forgetting that day, but forgiving the man who took his father's life.
Aaron was invited to speak at Prairie Lakes Church about his journey to forgiving Mark Becker.
"To sit here and say I completely forgive Mark Becker would be a lie. It's a process," said Thomas.
Thomas said each day you have a choice about how to live your life.
"That whole power to choose. What are you going to do everyday, what's your outlook, is just a big piece of what I learned from my dad," said Thomas.
Because of his dad, Thomas wants to live a life of faithfulness and forgiveness.
"So trying to find a way no matter what has happened or how bad it is, if you were the person who did that, you can still have forgiveness and hopefully move forward and be the person you're supposed to be," said Thomas.
Aaron Thomas said feeling sorry for himself won't get him anywhere and it's not his place to ask God why.
One of the goals for speaking at the church is to hopefully help someone else.
Thomas even added humor when speaking about his father's strong faith.
"My father was a great role model. He was an elder in our church. I was more likely to miss school than I was to miss church," he said.
During a press conference the day of the shooting, Aaron Thomas asked people to also pray for the Beckers.
He said it's what his father would have said. He thinks his dad would be proud of how the family has handled his murder, turning a negative into a positive and remaining faithful to God.
Reporter: Danielle Wagner
