Scars

Sunday at church I cried. This was probably the fifth time in my life that I cried in a church; three of those times were funerals. So, you can imagine it was a pretty big deal. The pastor shared a message about scars. He reminded us that we all have scars, some exterior and some on our hearts. These scars serve as reminders of pain we’ve had in our lives. It was a beautiful message full of insight. Just as the service was coming to an end he shared a story; this was the part that made me cry. He said that he had heard a story about a little boy in Florida. This boy decided he wanted to go swimming. He ran as fast as he could and dove into a lake near his back yard. An alligator had made its way into this lake. The boy saw the alligator swimming toward him and began swimming as fast as he could back toward the shore. The boy’s father saw what was going on and ran to the edge of the dock. He reached out and grabbed his son’s arms, at that exact same moment the alligator bit down on the boys legs. The boy’s life was in his fathers hands. His dad struggled and fought with the alligator to save his son. A neighbor saw what was going on and grabbed a gun and killed the alligator. The boy’s legs were severely damaged and he was rushed to the hospital. After a few weeks in intensive care, the boy was finally released. Once home a reporter came to interview the boy about what happened. Toward the end of the interview she asked if she could see the scars on the boy’s legs. He lifted up his pant leg and showed his scars. A moment later he asked the reporter if she wanted to see the best scars. He rolled up his sleeves and revealed scars on his arms. The boy proudly declared, “These are from my dad saving me”.
We all hurt. This world is hard and often painful. The message on Sunday was a reminder to me that God is on our side. We may feel like the world is pulling us down and ready to eat us up, but we have a Father who won’t let that happen. He is on the dock clinging to us for dear life. I often complain about how hard my life is. I cry out to God about the pain I feel and don’t understand why he lets me hurt. Sometimes we have to go through the pain to be saved. Scars remind us of the pain we have felt, but they should also serve as a reminder of the pain we have overcome. If you are hurting remember that sometimes the things that hurt the most are also the things that will save us.

Psalm 71: 20-21“Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up. You will increase my honor and comfort me once again.”

For more information about the service I mentioned in my blog…Go to http://www.oasisla.org/
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