She sat with her hands folded, trying to hide the two stubs where once her fingers were. She had lost them in a motorcycle accident, and was finding that her 8th grade students were staring and pointing at the place where her fingers used to be. I had the privilege of helping her acquire a new set of prosthetic digits that were so beautiful and life like, she shed tears as I helped her put them on for the first time. The devices were so lifelike, they actually reproduced her fingerprints using her whole fingers on her other hand. she kept holding them up and saying “ nobody will ever notice what I’ve lost”. Scars, missing parts, surgical mistakes, we all carry them with us through our life. Sometimes we can cover them up or replace what was lost, but the memory and emotions of that loss experience still lingers through our lives. My first major scar was given by my pet dog (who I discovered later was part wolf!). After several attempts to warn me off of blowing in his face, Rinney lunged forward and tore into my upper lip. Several hours and several stitches later, I was recovering from the results of my over enthusiastic teasing of my wolf dog. I now had a scar, on my face no less, for everybody to see. That’s the problem with scars, if people see them, they want to know how they got there. Sometimes we tell the real story, and sometimes we speak evangelastically, as a pastor friend of mine says. We stretch the truth, and even re-work it until our scar takes on a life of its own. Sometimes we do our best to hide scars, burying them in clothes or makeup. We fear people will stare, ask for our story, or look away in disgust. Jesus knows your pain. His scars are there for you to see, the proof of one who was willing to pay the ultimate price so you could see those scars, and know how much you are loved. Jesus walked the earth to show that we could be forever connected to his love, scars and all. While on earth, Jesus saw the best and worst of man. He saw the beauty of love and family, and witnessed the darkness of religious leaders he called ‘blind guides’. This race of Israelites were supposed to be Gods hands and feet to His people, the servants of their time, giving love and hope to the masses, scars or not. In the end, after Jesus had died on the cross, he had acquired from those supposed leaders, the scars on his wrists and feet from the nails, and his back where the scourge whip had left its mark, and the hole where the spear was thrust. There is a beautiful verse that describes how Jesus felt about acquiring those scars. It is found in a letter to the Hebrews and it goes like this-
“Looking to Jesus the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross, despising its shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God”
Do you see it? The awesome love of God so powerful that it brought joy, JOY to Jesus to take the scars meant for you and me! He endured the cross, he didn’t run from it, or shrink away in the horror of what he was going to go through. He despised the shame associated with cross death, which at the time was for only the worst criminal and political enemy of Rome. Death didn’t come after Jesus, He ran towards it, willingly embracing the pain and humiliation so that we would never have to. Look more deeply into those scars, study them, and fully understand the price paid to have a relationship with you and all of humanity.
Here comes the next verse with the call to our response-
“ Consider him who endured such hostility from sinners so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”
Feeling weary or fainthearted? Consider the scars Jesus endured, and be encouraged, enlivened, and stout hearted. Consider this daily, hourly, allow the horrible truth of the cross scars to remind you of how loved you are by the God of the universe.
What do you see when you see a person’s scars? Do you judge, walk by without a second glance, or do you smile, connect, and, with a glance, for one sweet moment, remind them that the lovesick carpenter with the scars on his body knows and cares for them today. This is what seeing and being seen is all about. Looking out from our own selfish, demanding frightened world to see somebody, and give them the second glance of love from Jesus! And as Jesus flows out of you, the person you see receives the second glance of love, hope, acceptance, and connection, all in the second it takes to give it. You may never see that person again, but you can be sure they will be better for the moment you met. Oh did I mention what’s in it for you? As you look out with the eyes of Jesus, you will feel his presence, and his joy as he washes through your soul, and watches you learning how to see all over again.
Self imposed or other imposed scars?
There is a distinct difference between the scars we acquire as a result of our own choices, and those where we have scars imposed on us by others, nature, or life.
When I decided to keep blowing in Rinney’s face, I opened myself to a scarring experience. I wasn’t a victim, other than a victim of youth and inexperience. I have other scars that came from my decisions, but that’s another story. The point is that sometimes our scars come from our decisions, and sometimes they come from actions that are not ours.
When I was a kid, we would go to the local circus shows that dotted the nation in the 60’s and 70’s. I saw all the booths that contained all the, shall we say, ‘unique anatomy crowd’, or as they are usually known, the freak show.
The circus side show had many unique looking people who decided to use their looks to make money. Many could not hold a normal job, and the side show was their only chance to make a living. They endured the stares and unkind words from the ’normal’ people for the money and security the circus brought them. After the show was over, they hung around each other and formed a family of misfits. Even in off season, they would gather in small communities in southern states to recover from the long road show, and enjoy the healing power of family. Here they could relax, not have to explain their unique anatomy, and just be themselves. Many were very intelligent, articulate, and well read. It was their body that was twisted and deformed, not necessarily their mind or soul.
Today we can see people who think they are a side show every day. They are the ones who purposely make themselves look uncomfortably different from everyone else. Some do it just to freak us out, and make us stay away from them. “ I know I’m different, and that I make you uncomfortable. Stay away or I may do something crazy!” They enjoy the dark side power to scare people off so they can’t get close enough to hurt them. Others dress up and stick objects in their flesh just to see if anybody will see and give them the attention they crave so badly. They ask the question ‘ will you look past this enough to see the real me?’ I sometimes engage in this second scenario just to see where the person is coming from. I ask them about their hair, how they got it to stay like that, or their piercing, how they chose that part to stick with sharp metal objects. At times, I have uncovered an intelligent, very needy person who is shocked somebody actually would talk to them, and be interested in their world. This world can cause damage that goes beyond our outer shell. Starting a conversation can signal that we want to go deeper than the facade. Part two coming soon!
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