Scars

Scars leave us vulnerable, cut open, pierced and marked. We become branded with our stores, made different and changed. Some scars are incredibly painful, seeping into our deepest identity, creating our deepest wounds. Some scars leave us broken and blind, unable to see the light, crawling and inching towards mercy and grace. But with any scar, in time, it has the opportunity to heal. Many times, it is still weaker than before, still more prone to future vulnerability. However, it is also made more aware, more obvious, thus more attentive to us. We now pay more attention in our lives to our areas of scars, thus providing transformation. Scars can be used for beautiful healing, extreme redemption, and incredible growth to become someone better.

Sacrifice

I have many scars in my own life, some are healed, some are only in the beginning stages of healing, still open and oozing. Yet, as I begin to process them and make steps humbly towards grace and redemption I change. I grow more compassion for others, more understanding for those hurting in similar circumstances. My heart softens and as I am weak, I become stronger in Christ, for as I lay down myself and my pride, and pick up the cross instead, my focus and vision changes. My values are transformed, my purposed fixed and my eyes focused. As I live broken and in need of Jesus, I become more alive than I ever could be on my own. For, there is something so beautiful about the act of sacrifice, laying ourselves down and choosing others instead. This is why Motherhood is one of the most beautiful things to me. It is an extreme sacrifice of laying yourself down to care for and nurture the needs of your children. Beauty. This is why the act of service in the military is such a beautiful thing to me. Laying down their lives and time with their families for the sake of our nation. Beauty. This is why the messy, the broken and the frayed pieces are so beautiful to me. For, although there is certainly pain there, there is also sacrifice, and through the sacrifice comes wisdom, and through the wisdom comes grace and grace changes actions and grace shines light on the darkness, and that is a beautiful thing worth capturing. Grace produces hope, and the world runs to hope!

Vulnerable, Yet Set Free

Here is a start to my own Scars Project I am working on this year. It has been a beautiful, healing process for me. Leaving me vulnerable, yet set free.