Scars

A scar can only come as the result of a wound being healed. There are scars that can be seen where the wounds were once plain to see. Still other wounds were deep and are now hidden with forgiveness and healing. A heart that has been wounded can have many scars but a process has to have happened. It is a process of forgiveness and healing. Without the process we have a wounded heart that still drips with pain.

While in my late teens I was helping a friend clear some river-land of heavy brush when I hit my knee with an axe. I still have the scar to remind me of that day so long ago. I had some large moles from birth that were later removed. They too left some scars behind. These scars are small compared to my inner scars left by hurt and deception. The inner scars are too many to list but each one has a story of its own. I didn’t cause any of them directly like I did with the axe and unlike the moles, they weren’t there at birth. They are a result of relationship pain and misunderstandings. Many of them are a result of opening my heart to trust but then to end up wishing I hadn’t. You know where I am coming from. It’s probably happened to you too.

In vision I can see so many of us walking around with hearts dripping with pain. It is as bothersome as a roof that leaks with a continuous drip. We can put buckets out to catch the drip but the roof still leaks. Many have used buckets to cope with the dripping pain. Metaphorically, the buckets are such things as drugs, alcohol, sex, material possessions, food, and the list goes on and on. If we can only fix the area that drips we can find great happiness. Let’s throw the buckets away. Healing on the inside is so valuable for living a life of abundance. Without healing, abundance means nothing.

While hiking in the mountains of North Carolina about twelve years ago I met another believer in Christ. He had been trained in how to receive inner healing. We sat down in a small gazebo that day and he began to lead me backwards and then forwards. We talked about the many pains of the past, one at a time, as they surfaced in my mind. Then he led me in a prayer or declaration of forgiveness towards the ones that had caused the pain. It took many hours. Much like a hiker who looses his backpack, I walked off the mountain as free as air. I had let go of shame, unforgiveness, and even hate. I had never seen this guy before and I have never seen him since. I do not even know his name. He is one of the faceless people that blessed my life in leading me in the process of turning wounds into scars. I have often wondered why he spent so much time with me. He probably has no idea of how much I have freely talked about many of the wounds and showed my scars as a positive result. Scars are a more pleasant sight to share than open wounds.

The process was so simple. After praying and asking Holy Spirit to bring to mind the wounds, we just simply waited for them to surface. As the pain surfaced we asked Jesus to heal the wound and then I made the decision to forgive anyone that caused them. One by one the wounds turned into scars. You can do the same thing. Do it alone or with a friend. Start turning the inner wounds into scars. There are also inner healing seminars and meetings sponsored by churches that you can be a part of. It is our season to turn wounds into scars. The pain is gone and the testimony is all that needs to remain. Any testimony of Jesus doing something in us is an opportunity for someone else to receive the same (see Revelation 19:10).

It is impossible to live in our fullest potential and step into the abundant things of God with dripping wounds. The soldier returning from the battle field must submit to the physician. It is here that he recovers and is restored at the hands of the physician. Jesus is the Great Physician. I can’t show you my scars on the inside, but you can see the results of the healing. He heals from the inside out.