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b'Rushing out of the castle, I fastened my cloak around my neck and swung my traveling pack over my shoulder. After making sure the horse was ready and bridled, I swung myself into the saddle and kicked forward. \\u201cThere is no way I\\u2019m staying here,\\u201d I thought to myself, \\u201cnot after what the King assigned me to do.\\u201d\\nOnce I was in a trot, I heard my brother shouting for me to stop. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Joan, wait! You can\\u2019t disobey the King!\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nI slowed the horse and waited for my brother to catch up. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153You don\\u2019t understand, Nicholas! The Kingdom of Keane does not deserve the King\\u2019s mercy, or mine for that matter. Look at all they are doing: raiding, killing, and burning crops. No, they don\\u2019t deserve mercy.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nNicholas looked at me with sadness in his eyes and laid his hand on the horse\\u2019s bridle. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Neither do we. The King did not have to grant us mercy like he did. We should have been hanged on the gallows.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nWincing at his statement, our previous life of thievery flashed before my eyes like a dagger: sleeping in abandoned huts and stealing what food we could find. My brother was right, but the evilness of Keane\\u2019s Kingdom was worse than anything we had ever done, wasn\\u2019t it?\\nShaking the doubt out of my mind, I flinched the bridle away from Nicholas\\u2019s grasp and set out at a gallop.\\n\\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153Joan, you can\\u2019t run away from the King\\u2019s mission!\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d Nicholas called out. \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153You must warn the Kingdom of the invading army!\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nHis pleads made me pause, but I couldn\\u2019t bring myself to turn back. No, I was running away, and nothing would stop me. Keane\\u2019s Kingdom didn\\u2019t deserve warning or mercy, and they surely wouldn\\u2019t receive it from me.\\nGlancing back, I saw my brother standing in the courtyard. The words of the King raced in my mind: \\xe2\\u20ac\\u0153The one who has received great mercy is willing to extend that mercy to others. That is why I am entrusting you with this mission.\\xe2\\u20ac\\x9d\\nBlinking, I shoved the King\\u2019s words out of my thoughts and galloped on. \\u2022 Sophia Bricker\\n\\u2022 What would you do if you were Joan? Why?\\n\\u2022 Similar to Jonah in the Bible, Joan doesn\\u2019t think the people of Keane deserve forgiveness. Is Nicholas\\u2019s argument about the mercy they received from the King a fair one in comparison to the Kingdom of Keane? Why or why not? \\n\\u2022 How does the King\\u2019s mercy reflect the mercy and grace we receive from Jesus? \\nBut because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions\\u2014it is by grace you have been saved. Ephesians 2:4-5 (NIV)\\n\\xa0\\nRead Verses:\\nJohn 3:1-22; 19:38-42; 1 Corinthians 3:6-9'