Tattoos And Transformation

What a week this has been and it’s only Tuesday! I could barely wait to update you on some of the exciting things taking place with Stripped Free. God is working, my friends! There is no doubt about it. Let me start at the beginning……

On Sunday morning I was standing in the hallway at my church when a text came in from, Stef, my ministry partner. It simply read, “She just accepted Jesus.” What??? I started smiling and could barely contain my joy! Stef and I attend different churches. Many of you have read my previous blog posts about our precious friend from the clubs that received Christ as her Savior during Easter weekend at my church, Mount Pleasant Christian Church. Over the last three weeks we have another friend who has been attending with Stef at Heartland Church. We had been praying that she would begin to realize just how loved she is by the God of the universe and that her heart would be open to Him. When I got the text from Stef I stood there in utter amazement at my great big God. He did it again and I praise Him for it!

I then ran to the lobby to find my friend that got saved on Easter to tell her the good news. I found her and relayed the exciting information and she stood there and burst into tears…tears of joy. She said, “I’m just so happy for her!” We stood there and hugged and let the moment really sink in. May those moments never become “old hat.” May they never lose their eternal significance in our eyes. May we always be in a state of spiritual wonder when we hear, once again, God’s love broke through to save and redeem.

The story, however, doesn’t end there. None of our stories ever do. That moment of spiritual transformation is just the beginning for all of us, but our new sister in Christ had a physical transformation to go through as well. As many dancers do, she had a number of tattoos, but there was one in particular that stood out. It ran across the top of her chest and read, “I Don’t Forgive You.” We recently found out the permanent declaration was aimed at her father. Over the last few weeks Stef had been talking with her about God and forgiveness. She seemed to be finding her way to a place of forgiveness and was open to making a change. All of her tattoos tell a story, but this one had a lot of pain attached to it and was in a very visible place. Stef told her she had a friend who was a tattoo artist and suggested they talk to him to see if he could change it into something beautiful. After all, that’s what God does for all of us, isn’t it? He takes something painful and ugly and makes it beautiful in each of our lives. Only He can do that!

They met with the artist and came up with a plan and she loved it, so the physical transformation of her painful past began on Monday. The statement of “I Don’t Forgive You” was turned into a crown of thorns with the word “Forgiven” in the middle. It should be complete in a few weeks. I had the awesome privilege of holding her hand during the actual process and reading the crucifixion story to her so she would understand the significance of the crown that would be permanently emblazoned on her chest. It was a moment I will never forget.

That night at our weekly Bible study, Stef and I joined our two new friends and watched as hugs were exchanged and a precious gift was given from one to the other as a way of celebrating new life. Words of joy and encouragement were shared. At one point in the evening, one friend looked at the other and said, “Now let me tell you about the power of prayer!” Stef and I caught each other’s eye and just smiled from ear to ear as we watched one tell of the great miracles God has already done in her life and assuring the other that great things await her as well.

These women are hungry to know everything about this Jesus that saved them and loves them so deeply. They are excited about how He’s changed their lives already. Their futures are limitless and their eternities are secured. Wow. I stand in awe of my God because He is good, He cares about every detail and He loves with a depth and passion that I will never truly understand this side of Heaven. All I know to do is to love Him in return and be forever grateful.

For more pictures from this incredible transformation, click here: https://t.co/WyLvNsab7M

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