It has been 4 days since I have turned 18 and wow is it awesome! I am officially an adult even though I definitely act like an 8 year old! One thing I decided to do was get a tattoo. Tattoos; they have a really different reaction to different people. Some people would gasp and think it is a ridiculous idea for me to get something permanently put on my body for the rest of my life. Others just say “Hey that’s awesome!” and if you are either that’s super awesome!
I love the idea of a tattoo. If it has a special meaning to it I think it’s awesome to be able to remember that your whole life. My tattoo says “willing” and is in the shape of the cross. My sweet friend Hayden Schwarting wrote it out for me and it is so beautiful and everything I wanted. Some people ask me why the world willing. I love giving them this reply “because how awesome is it that we get to serve a God who was so willing to die on the cross for us.” It is something I needed for myself, an everyday reminder that I get to serve a God who was so willing to get on that cross for me. My family. My friends. Neighbors. Teachers. Strangers. All of us.
It is an overwhelming feeling. Jesus died on the cross for us. That is the most pure form of love anyone could get. I chose this word this past year at my last fall weekend. Fall weekend is a weekend trip to obx with my schools Younglife. I was feeling all the feelings this weekend because it was super bitter sweet this would be my last fall weekend as a camper. We were sitting and listening to our speaker share the story of Gods love for us. We were listening to the story of Jesus’s crucifixion and he said to us “Jesus so willingly got on that cross for you guys and didn’t have any second thoughts about it.” When I heard that the word, willing just got stuck in my head. Willing. Willingly got on the cross. Willingly died on the cross. No hesitation. THAT’S CRAZY!!! He died for us!!! It blows my mind every. single. time.
For a few months after I just couldn’t get that word out of my head. Willing. So I decided what better way to remember it than a tattoo. It is beautiful to me. It has a beautiful meaning to me. Yeah some people can’t read it or don’t understand it, but I do, and I get to use it as a conversation starter as well. This tattoo does so much for me. It allows me to be bold and courageous, to not be afraid to proclaim my faith, to not care what others think, to share the gospel. It is a daily reminder to take up my cross and sacrifice my life for Him because life is found in Him. I get to be a daughter of the King who willingly got on that cross for me!! That is the thing I get to see everyday and I wouldn’t take it back for anything.
