A Beautiful Scar

Do you have a testimony of the Lord’s goodness in your life? We all do. We all have beautiful memories when we look back over our lives to see how the Lord has brought us out. I can imagine that some of you may feel like some of the memories you hold may not be so beautiful, instead, maybe they are too painful to remember. If you are feeling like this, I can definitely relate. I have scars from things that I have gone through, but what soldier doesn’t? In my time of prayer, God has reminded me that our scares are beautiful in his sight. He is a God that loves us despite what we have been through.

Even when we have moments where we can’t face ourselves in the mirror, God still faces us. His love for us is incomprehensible.

Isaiah 61:1-3 says:

The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;

² To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn;

³ To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified.

In verse 3, we see that God makes an exchange with us. He gives us beauty for our ashes. We give him our mourning and he gives us joy. We give him our heaviness and he gives us a garment of praise!

I can remember when the doctors told me that I had to have a c-section. It was not the birthing plan that I had in my head, but because of previous surgeries, I had to go that route. I was terrified of being numb from the waist down and that the doctors had to make an incision to remove my baby. As I felt the needle go near my spine, I barrelled down and trusted God. Although I couldn’t feel the incision, I felt a lot of tugging as the time came near to deliver my baby. It was a very uncomfortable feeling with lots of pressure. But almost immediately when I heard my son cry for the first time, the discomfort was forgotten. The nurse walked the baby around to my side and placed him so near to my face. He knew that he was near his mom. Amid the pain, I birthed something beautiful.

As time went on and my body began to heal, I was still having a hard time adjusting to what my new body looked like inside and out. The pain of my incision was unbearable at times. I wasn’t one of those moms who bounced right back. For months I still looked pregnant. I struggled with my self-image.  But each time I placed my hand near my scar, I was reminded of my beautiful baby boy. God healed me. He healed my body and he healed my mind. He helped me to see the beauty in what I went through. I was beautiful to him.

Have you ever heard the statement “You don’t look like what you’ve been through?” That’s because of the glory of God. His glory covers us!

We may have experienced great pain in our past, but God can take whatever we have been through and make it for your good and for his glory.

If you are dealing with painful memories of your past, go inward ask God to help you through it. Ask God to show you his purpose in your pain. When he reveals it to you, make an exchange with him. Give him your ashes for his beauty. Please like, follow and share!