Why do we hide our scars and our wounds? Why do we think that it disqualifies us from
so many things in life? I can't help
others. I can't be in ministry. I can't get a better job. Why?
We think that these scars are bad.
We don't want anyone to know. Or
we want to pretend, and we want others to pretend, that they are not even there.
What are our scars, our broken pieces? They may be physical scars that others may
see. But a lot of the times, the bigger
scars are the unseen ones. These internal
scars are so much harder for others to see, but we tend to think they do. And that these scars are all they see when
they look at us. Physical injuries and
traumas may also lead to the hidden scars in our mind, emotions, and
spirit. Some of these are the emotional
scars of hurt, rejection, insecurity, bitterness, feeling unloved, unwanted,
unimportant, a failure, and so on. We
then say to ourselves "who would
listen to me? I messed up. Why would
they trust me? All I have is hurt? How can I help?" So many lies and we listen to them. We agree with them. Sometimes, we do not recognize that we have
these scars, or, if we do, we don't realize how deep they go. How much did the loss of a job effect
you? A loved one or a friend betrayed
you? People making fun of you - the way you look, the way you dress, the way
you speak, etc?
A couple of weeks ago, I was walking on the beach. I love the sound of the waves and how vast
the ocean is. I find the scenery
beautiful and calming. And I also am reminded
how great our God is. I like looking for
shells whenever I am at the beach. There
were a fair amount of shells in a variety of colors. But what I noticed was that there were
beautiful shells despite being only part of a whole shell, or broken, or
cracked. These imperfections didn't
detract from the beauty of the shells. I
heard God speak to my heart, that we all have imperfections, scars, brokenness. We try to hide these things. We believe that it will keep us from doing
things and that God can't possibly use us.
But God sees our brokenness. He
sees the scars. AND, a big AND, He says
I am beautiful. He wants to use me. I don't have to hide anything.
Even in the midst of anything that has happened to us, Jesus
is there. He never leaves us. His love for us is unchanging. Our help is found in Him. Do we truly believe what He has told us? We say we believe God and His word. But then we act based on beliefs that we are
not lovable and not beautiful. He says I
am beautiful. I am loved. I am wonderfully made. I matter.
I have a purpose.
So what do we do with these scars? We take them to Jesus. He is the only one that can heal them. Does that meant that they go away? That they won't be seen anymore? No.
Jesus impressed on me that He still carries His scars. The nail marks in His hands in feet, the
stripes on His back, the piercing of His side.
They are all still there. (Remember Thomas who touched the nail scars in Jesus' hands after Jesus' resurrection.) We
despise our scars. But His scars are His
glory also. Our scars can also be used
to bring glory to God. When we share our
hurts with others and how God has walked us through these experiences, we bring
God glory. Also, these hurts changes
us. If we let God heal us, these scars
do not control us. We grow in faith and
maturity. The hardest experiences of my
life have led to so much growth and knowledge of God. I have grown in my walk so that I don't walk
in worry everyday or in fear or in insecurity.
I don't mean that I never fight these battles anymore, but I recognize
them and do not let them hold me down. I
am still growing and learning and Jesus is with me every step of the way. I don't let the scars dictate who I am and
what I can do. I can say these things because He has been
with me through every circumstance, every hurt (both physical and emotional and
spiritual) and He has never left
me. I know Him as my friend, my savior,
my deliverer, my healer because He has been all these things to me. If I never had circumstances that required these
things, I would not have experienced Him in these ways. I don't have to be ashamed. I don't have to pretend. I don't have to be afraid. I just need to walk each day with Him and
take Him at His word.
I named my blog Pearls for Your Journey. When I think of pearls, I think of something
small and precious. Something that has
to be searched out. You don't find a
pearl just lying around. They are found
inside the soft tissue of a living shelled mollusk, like an oyster. I think it is amazing how pearls are
created. Pearls are formed by a defense
mechanism inside the mollusk against a potentially threatening irritant or an
attack from outside the shell that injures the tissue. The mollusk creates the pearl by enclosing
the irritant inside a pearl sac and successively coating it with layers which
becomes the pearl that we see in the end.
This nacre seals off the irritant from the mollusk and becomes a pearl.
I think we have to dig in our own lives to discover the
pearls that are hiding in our lives. I
believe that the scars we have received can become some of the most beautiful
pearls in our lives if we let God heal us and redeem these broken pieces. During these broken times, we learn so much
about ourselves, about God, and about those around us. You learn things about yourself - some things
to grow more into, things that you need to change, and truths about yourself
that amaze you. You also learn more and
more about God. We may think we know
that God loves us, but He is infinite.
He is not limited. And the way
that He shows up in the midst of these times can blow us away. We realize that there is so much more to know
about God. And, about those around us,
we learn that there are those that God has placed in our lives to bless us and
those that God has placed in our lives for us to bless. Let's continue to look at ourselves and our circumstances through God's eye. God says I am beautiful even with all my scars. You are beautiful, too.
