When You Have Scars.

There's a cross on my car.

It's not intentional, I promise.  I never meant to accidentally ram my vehicle into another vehicle.  A parked vehicle.  A parked vehicle that belongs to a woman that attends my church.  A lovely woman who, upon hearing the tremble in my voice and seeing the tremble in my hands, asked if I was alright to drive.

It was a mess, y'all.  I was a mess. 

When I first noticed the cross of crinkled paint and plastic on my front bumper, I groaned.  I was humiliated.  My heart would cringe when I'd have to explain how I damaged my car.  But now?  After some time has passed, after I can look at the situation with grace and wisdom, I catch a glimpse of that cross and shake my head and chuckle to myself.

That cross is proof that I have a past, but it's not a past that I have to repeat.  It's a past that has taught me valuable lessons.

My heart, much like the front end of my car, has come in contact with some things that haven't been good for it.  As a result, I have some scars ranging from small scuff marks to huge crevices where life has taken chunks of me.  And I think if you were to take the time to really analyze yourself today, you would find that your heart is in a similar condition.

You have a past.  You have scars.  

And maybe you don't like acknowledging that truth.  Maybe you back away from the cleansing power of Christ's blood because you're afraid of what you will be left with once the cleaning is done.  Maybe you're afraid of truly seeing your scratched and scuffed and scarred heart in all of it's glory.  Maybe you're humiliated by the damage you have inflicted upon yourself, by the damage you have allowed others to inflict upon you.

But this amazing thing happens when you hand your scuffed and scarred heart to Christ: He takes it.  He doesn't examine your wounds, raw and a shade of red that you can't describe, and cast you and your heart to the side.  He doesn't laugh in the face of your humiliation, of your hurt, of your guilt and shame.  

He takes your scarred heart into His scarred hands and He redeems it all.  Because He loves you.  Because He conquered death, hell, and the grave through His act of love on the cross.  And that cross?

That cross is proof that you have a past, but it's not a past that you have to repeat.      

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Day Twenty Nine.

You can find the rest of the series here.