Today, I’m wearing a bright-pink shirt with the words “To Write Love on Her Arms” written on the front. I had spotted the shirts before at Christian musical festivals, and also had noticed some Christian musicians wearing them during concerts. But I didn’t know what it meant, “To Write Love on Her Arms.”

Last weekend, at a musical festival called LifeLight, I learned of the story behind the shirts:

The shirts are a fundraiser for a nonprofit group trying to help young adults who harm themselves (by cutting and other means) and who suffer from depression. I bought a shirt, and the letter printed on the inside the shirt is worth the price alone. The letter says that a group of friends started printing the shirts to help a friend, Renee. The young woman had a history of self-injury, and her friends began selling shirts as a way to pay for her treatment. They also rallied around her — as Christ calls us to do — to lift her up and offer her hope in a time of deepest need.

Today, To Write Love on Her Arms is a nonprofit organization, and proceeds of the sale of the shirts go to support treatment and recovery of others. Their website is http://www.twloha.com/

My blog, http://www.gettingdownwithjesus.blogspot.com/ , is new. I don’t have a lot of traffic here. But maybe you stumbled onto this blog by “chance.” Maybe you know someone who is hurting. Or maybe you’re the one in pain. If that’s the case, what I have to say next is for you:

I don’t have any idea what you’re going through. But I know Someone who does. His name is God. He already took the hurt for you. In Isaiah 53:5, it says that He was “pierced for our transgressions. … by His wounds we are healed.”

I pray now that you may begin to find peace in knowing that there is Someone who loves you enough to bear the pain for you. And I pray that you know that He doesn’t expect you to walk this road alone.

There are many people out there who care and who understand what you’re going through. Check out the link above for TWLOHA. Also, I have a friend who is a therapist with helpful advice on her blog: http://www.hopeforward.blogspot.com/ .

Seek someone who understands.

Do not give up hope.

There is a God who “gets” you. In Hebrews 4, it says that we have a God who can “sympathize with our weaknesses.”

He gets us, because He’s been there.

A final word: When I wear this bright-pink shirt, I will be praying for you. I don’t know your name. But God does. It’s engraved on the palm of His hands. (Isaiah 49:16)