Grace Encounters
North Seattle Church of the Nazarene
THANKSGIVING EDITION: November 2008
Scars
by Charles W. Christian
I have at least three scars that are visible (if you look close enough). I remember vividly how I got them. The first one is above my left eye. I was playing a football game in my front yard with my brother and my cousin. I slipped in the grass and hit my head on an old plow (yes, a real old-fashioned plow that was decorating the front yard!). The cut required stitches and was one of three times that I had to have stitches above that eye.
The second scar is on my right hand (there are two small ones). At church, when I was in fourth grade, a friend of mine and I were taking turns jumping from the edge of the pavement to the small porch with a side door leading to the Sunday School rooms. When it was my second turn to jump for distance, another kid pushed opened the glass door unexpectedly (and accidentally), and my hand broke through the glass! Blood was everywhere, and though I did not need stitches for this one, the scars remain to this day.
The final scar I have dates all the way back to kindergarten. There was some sort of growth on my left arm that doctors were concerned about. It was removed but had to have stitches (it turned out to be OK), and the scars left behind still remain after all these years.
I’m sure there are others that if I thought long enough I could account for. Scars come all to frequently in life. Like everyone, I also have scars that cannot be seen. They are scars of the heart. I’m sure you know about those. Like our outward scars, they are hard to get rid of! And they hurt worse. However, I have learned that even those scars can heal, and even if they don’t go away altogether, like my outward scars they can get to a place where they do not hurt anymore! This happens only because of love. Love is the remedy that brings ongoing healing to the hidden scars we receive in life.
I once accidentally (yes, it was an accident) bumped a girl in first grade while we were standing in the line for recess. She stumbled, fell, and hit the back of her head on the merry-go-round. The blood came, and it left a small scar (thankfully forever covered by her hair in the back). I remember feeling so guilty about leaving a scar on someone! I am sure that my sins and mistakes have left other scars on people across the years, some visible and some invisible. I feel badly for contributing to any scars, because I know how they can hurt. Truth be told, I feel worse about the scars I’ve helped create than the ones I have received. These scars – whether visible or invisible – have to be healed by the same remedy: God’s love and time. Over time, the love of God and the love of others bring healing to all our scars – even the ones we cause! This is good news, and it is why Jesus came.
The most humbling picture of Jesus in all the Bible, in my opinion, is the account of Jesus’s return when He appears for all the nations and all who ever lived to see Him face to face. The Bible says, “And they shall look upon Him, whom they have pierced....” Wow! Jesus, even though He has risen from the dead never to die again, and even though (according to the Gospel accounts especially) His resurrected body far transcends the kind of bodies we have (it can pass through walls, for instance!), still chooses to retain the scars. They don’t hurt Him anymore. Instead, they are eternal reminders of His victory over sin and death for us all. And the most amazing part: He keeps His scars, but in the resurrection, He gets rid of all of ours – inside and out! What blessing. What a gift. What an act of eternal love. What a Savior! I am thankful that the scars don’t hurt always. And I am thankful that God’s love, expressed through the love of Jesus and of others, can take the pain of the scars away until that day when Jesus removes them forever. Happy Thanksgiving!
Thanksgiving Potluck: This Sunday, November 23rd
The Arabic congregation will join us for this event. EACH FAMILY PLEASE BRING A MAIN DISH and LAST NAMES A-M BRING A DESSERT TO SHARE AS WELL AND LAST NAMES N-Z PLEASE BRING A SALAD TO SHARE AS WELL. The church will provide apple juice for drinks.
Ladies Christmas Dessert Drama Update
Ladies, remember to get your favorite holiday recipe to Carrie Halle jcjckdk@verizon.net or bring a copy of it to church on Sunday. And let her know if you would like to bring one of your favorite desserts or batch of cookies to the dessert to add to the buffet table. If there are other areas where you can help please let Carrie know that too.
Mark Your Calendar....
NOVEMBER
23: Thanksgiving Potluck following the morning worship service
27 & 28: Church office closed for Thanksgiving
30: No Sunday school – Morning Worship at 10:45 AM with guest speaker, Jay Halle
30: First Sunday of Advent
DECEMBER
2: Ladies Christmas Dessert Drama w/Taproot Theatre – 7:00 PM at NSCN. Only two Sundays left to buy your tickets ($8 each)!
6: Baby Shower for Emylee Walker - 3:30 PM at NSCN
14: NSCN Children’s Christmas Musical during the morning worship service.
14: Memorial Service for Orpha Austin – 4:00 PM at NSCN
Grace Encounters is the bi-monthly newsletter of
North Seattle Church of the Nazarene
For information, free subscription, or comments – contact:
Laurie Rogers, Church Administrator nscn@reachone.com
OR
Dr. Charles W. Christian, Pastor charles.chr@juno.com
Church Office: 206-367-5955
Fax: 206-367-1432
