84 Scars
Manny was in his front yard pulling out nails from an old fence bordering his house and repainting the fence white. As he was pulling out the nails, Manny started to reflect upon his past.
Manny was once in a gang years ago. He committed many crimes and did many things that he now regrets. Every time Manny made an "achievement" (for example, beating up a rival gang member), he nailed a nail into the fence. Many nailed many nails into that fence during his time in the gang.
Manny's crimes escalated to the point that he killed a young man in cold blood and went to prison. Manny was unrepentant during the trial and even had the gall to laugh at the victim's parents.
However, Manny discovered Jesus in prison. He accepted Christ into his life and saw the error of his ways. Manny wrote a letter asking for forgiveness from the victim's parents. He also wrote that he would accept the punishment of the death penalty and would ask his lawyer to stop the appeals process.
Manny did not really expect a response from the victim's parents, but they visited Manny and personally forgave him. They even surprisingly championed a commuted sentence for Manny.
After Manny served his time, he turned his life around when he got out of prison. He set up a foundation in the victim's name and did volunteer work to steer the local youth away from gangs into church and community programs.
Manny got up and looked at the fence and and admired the pearly white cover. However, while the fence did look beautiful now, Manny noticed all the gashes and holes in the fence that remained from pulling out all the those nails. Although Manny's sins have been forgiven due to the grace of God, Manny saw all the scars he left behind because of his sins. Manny sat back down and continued painting.
- Recommended reading 2 Chronicles 33:1-19
