Wounds and Scars

 As many of you may know, and some who may not, I had shoulder surgery on Friday. It was minor surgery, just a scope and some cleaning up of some issues in my shoulder joint. I had been suffering with pain since September and it really took that long to finally get through all the hoops to get it worked on. 

This morning as I was getting out of the shower and getting dried off, I was gingerly drying around the area where I still have three tiny incisions with sutures in them. (Sorry if this is too graphic...I could get much worse in descriptions) As I looked at them, I was struck by thoughts of wounds and scars. Right now, I have wounds, they are cuts in my skin where I could get infection. Things from the outside of my body could all of the sudden be in the inside of me causing sickness. That is a wound. Openness, vulnerability. 

Then my thoughts went to fast forward. A year from now (if I am still here) those wounds will be scars. I will look at them and remember the fact that January 2021 I had an arthroscopy on my shoulder and there is the proof, the proof then will be in the scar. I will never be able to deny that I had that procedure because I will have the scars to prove it. 

My thoughts continued then to the realization that Christ too still carries the scars of the wounds. It hit me, those nail pieced wounds have remained as scars all of these centuries later. I was struck with a realization of how much that tells me about Him and about me (you). 

Christ went to the cross. We could say willingly, for the most part it was. He had wrestled and pleaded that God would remove that method from Him, but in the end, He gave Himself willingly to the punishment. Then He was beaten and ridiculed and whipped and displayed for all to mock Him. After which the ultimate sacrifice was made as He took our sin upon Himself, in His sinless body, and was killed by the cruel death on a cross. He was wounded. Those wounds were invasive punctures in His hands that held Him to the cross. Painful! Open! Wounds! For me? Why? Because that was the only way to fulfill the plan. God wants me to be in fellowship with Him, and the only way to accomplish that was through wounds by a perfect sacrifice. There is a contrast to His wounds and mine, I have kept mine clean and covered to prevent infection from setting in. He opened His to receive the sin of all mankind, an infection that He hadn't experienced before the cross. 

When Christ resurrected, He was not the same as before the crucifixion. He had scars. That was the proof, just like my scars a year from now will be my proof, He has the proof in His nail scarred hands that tell me, "Christine, I went to the cross for you, I was open and bleeding and risked infection, took your sin and punishment for you and ultimately died for you. This is the sign, my scars." 

God spoke to me this morning through the wounds of my shoulder and reminded me of His great love for me. 

Do you know God in such a way that you hear Him speaking to your spirit? If not, you can. Jesus went to the cross for us. A free gift of salvation is given to us. Please, consider where you stand in light of Jesus and ask Him to forgive your sin. Then, choose to live for Him and grow in that relationship. If you have read this far and are at that point, reach out to me. I am here to teach you where to go next.