Some years ago,
on a hot summer day in South Florida , a little boy decided to go for a
swim in the old swimming hole behind his house.
In a hurry to dive into the cool water, he ran out the back door,
leaving behind shoes, socks, and shirt as he went.
He flew into the water, not realizing that as he swam toward the middle
of the lake, an alligator was swimming toward the shore.
His father, working in the yard, saw the two as they got closer and
closer together. In utter fear, he ran toward the water,
yelling to his son as loudly as he could. Hearing his voice, the little
boy became alarmed and made a U-turn to swim to his father. It was too
late. Just as he reached his father, the alligator reached him. From the
dock, the father grabbed his little boy by the arms just as the
alligator snatched his legs. That began an incredible tug-of-war between
the two. The alligator was much stronger than the father, but the father
was much too passionate to let go.
A farmer happened to drive by, heard his screams, raced from his truck,
took aim and shot the alligator. Remarkably, after weeks and weeks in
the hospital, the little boy survived. His legs were extremely scarred
by the vicious attack of the animal. And, on his arms, were deep
scratches where his father's fingernails dug into his flesh in his
effort to hang on to the son he loved.
The newspaper reporter who interviewed the boy after the trauma, asked
if he would show him his scars. The boy lifted his pant legs. And then,
with obvious pride, he said to the reporter, "But look at my arms. I
have great scars on my arms, too. I have them because my Dad wouldn't
let go." You and I can identify with that little boy. We have scars,
too. No, not from an alligator, but the scars of a painful past. Some of
those scars are unsightly and have caused us deep regret.
But, some wounds, my friend, are because God has refused to let go. In
the midst of your struggle, He's been there holding on to you. The
Scripture teaches that God loves you. You are a child of God. He wants
to protect you and provide for you in every way. But sometimes we
foolishly wade into dangerous situations, not knowing what lies ahead.
The swimming hole of life is filled with peril - and we forget that the
enemy is waiting to attack. That's when the tug-of-war begins - and if
you have the scars of His love on your arms, be very, very grateful. He
did not and will not ever let you go.
You just never know where a person is in his/her life and what they are
going through. Never judge another person's scars, because you don't
know how they got them. Also, it is so important that we are not
selfish, to receive the blessings of these messages, without forwarding
them to someone else. Right now, someone needs to know that God loves
them, and you love them, too - enough to not let them go .
