Today we encounter an extraordinary author-pastor-chaplain Samuel Kee … chaplain at O-Hare Airport in Chicago—one of the busiest airports in the world. Since reading this book I have had a different attitude toward seeing tattoos on bodies. I praise God for this change of attitude for I recently met a young man with many visible tats who could tell me a story about Jesus in each one of them! 

You, yourself, are a tattoo on the palms of Jesus hands! Rejoice!

Meditations—points to ponder

 Tattoos tell a story—

Tattooists are a voice for today’s culture. They reveal the desires of a nation 

transposed onto the skin in plain sight. 

While we may get tattoos for many reasons, there’s one common purpose: 

to tell a story. Tattoos are like the paintings of a novice trying to recreate 

the work of a master. The real Master, God, has painted us with 

dignity, life, and worth. 

Each of God’s paintings is a masterpiece in every sense of the word. 

God’s paintings aren’t done on canvas—not even the canvas of our skin—

but on the human soul.

In order to survive, humans need essentials such as 

air, food, water, shelter, and clothing, but they also need dignity. 

Dignity is crucial to survival. Without it, the human soul dies.

Q: Is it possible to find a source of dignity that runs deeper than our scars?

Q: Is it possible to find a source of permanent significance?

Q: What if I were to tell you that everyone has these kinds of indestructible tattoos? … 

These tattoos run much deeper, so deep that they’re untouchable. 

They are written on your soul in indelible ink and can never be erased. 

They are soul tattoos, put there by the hand of the Master.

Samuel Kee Soul Tattoo Introduction

Isaiah 49:16 (NRSV) — 16a See, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands; …