Face Scars Are Cool – Wednesday

Week 4 | Been There

Listen instead of reading

Take a Moment

Ask God what He wants to show you before reading today

Read The Daily

They told him, “We have seen the Lord!” But he replied, “I won’t believe it unless I see the nail wounds in his hands, put my fingers into them, and place my hand into the wound in his side.”(John 20:25)

I grew up with all brothers, so we loved scars.  The scar on my forehead is a 16 stitch reminder not to play chicken with older kids going really fast on bikes.  The 4 inch scar on my knee is a reminder that you should never play tackle football with your older brother in an old abandoned field full of broken glass.  What can I say, nobody ever accused the Carpenters of being geniuses.  To prove it,  I remember my older brother always wanted a knife scar that ran across his whole face because “it would look cool”.   As I’ve gotten older, I realized that girls don’t feel the same way about scars.  The idea of a scar that’s visible is actually quite scary…because it would be ugly.  I get the cosmetic side of that, but I don’t think it works for your scars in your life.  Some of us go through life with scars, wishing they would disappear forever. But scars and their stories are important to God – really important. 

When Jesus appeared to the disciples after His death, He brought His scars for a show-and-tell. Jesus’ resurrected body had some unique abilities, like walking through closed doors and ascending into the clouds. But despite these other world qualities, it also had a surprising human feature. It still showed the scars.  Jesus could have come back without them. Instead, He chose to keep them. It is because He had a message for us. The nail scarred hands of Jesus confirm beyond the shadow of any doubt that Jesus suffered. The scars also tell us that because He has suffered He knows, He cares, He understands. But they also tell us that He has overcome, that He has conquered. Our scars are also important, and He wants to use them.

I love the quote by Sharon Jaynes – “There is a big difference between a wound and a scar. A scar says, ‘I’ve been healed, and this is my story.” Scars recall old wounds. But they also offer encouragement. They remind us that in those moments when we could have played it safe, we chose to take a risk. When we could have chosen the easy way out, we decided to stay and struggle. When times got tough, we didn’t run and hide. Instead, we succumbed to the brutality of the moment, persisted through the pain, and survived to tell about it. Often, life’s most formative experiences are not the triumphs on the mountain top, but those born in the valley of our deepest anguish. 

Prayer for the Day

God what are you  showing me?  What am I going to do about it? 

God help me to see one person that I can serve through a kind word, random act of kindness, or simple gift today?

Make sure you complete the reading or comment today.

Read The New Testament In A Year

4 x 6 Plan | Read: Matthew 5:1-16 & Romans 2:12-29