Everyone wants to be loved

by Denise Goosby

Everyone wants to be loved.

            Everyone wants to be accepted.

            Everyone wants to be desired.

            But what happens when that longing alludes you? What happens when the physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual scars of living mark you as different? Someone who others feel may not deserve love, acceptance, and desire?

            What happens when you don’t fit society’s vision for what is beautiful—or your own?

            Scarred Like Him: Seeing the Beauty in the Life You Live tells a story of how our outer and inner woundedness affects our identity, worth, and value in the eyes of others. And in the eyes of ourselves.

            Most importantly, it shows us the power we have when we replace lies with truth. It shows the triumph we experience when we replace the often false, limiting, and negative beliefs we have about ourselves with God’s redemptive, grace-filled, and truthful view of our beauty.

        Scars marks us all. No one on this earth escapes being wounded. Your scars may have come from others or were self-inflicted. They may have occurred on the battlefield or the schoolyard. Maybe you got them in a boardroom or even a church potluck. Scars can afflict our minds, bodies, souls, and spirits. They trick us into believing there is no beauty in them or in our lives.

            Whether visible or invisible, we carry scars, often viewing ourselves in them. Our scars are ugly, so we see ourselves as ugly. We don’t want anyone touching them, so we see ourselves as untouchable. They show we are flawed, so we see ourselves as flawed, less than, or unworthy. They may fade, but they never go away, on display for the world to see. We need healing but our lives seem beyond redemption. And we are terrified others will see us that way too. 

            But our inner and outer afflictions—our scars—tell the truth of God’s faithfulness and workings in and through us. Where there are scars, there is healing. They show that God has kept us. That we are alive. That we endure. The pain of living in this world has not broken us. We must remember we are the offspring of a beautiful God. 

            Yes, honey, you are beautiful.

            You are beautiful…though that’s not the important point. Know that you are already loved, accepted, and desired. You are not defined by your looks. Your failures do not have the final say. Your afflictions may weary you, but they will not overcome you. 

            You and I do not have to hide in shame because of our scars.

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