"I hold on to You for dear life, and you hold me steady as a post..." Psalm 63

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

stretch marks...

It's not the first time I've had them...
unfortunately, no one warned me when I was pregnant with Alex that 
my previously tiny body would forever bear the marks of  the strain of all that extra weight.
I've grown used to them and am old enough to know that life is too short to care...{too much}

BUT..
these days I'm enduring a different kind of stretching and straining on my body...
ones that I am sure will also leave lasting marks.
I am expanding beyond my natural ability in so many ways lately.
And it is good
And I am grateful

But stretching means change
and change is sometimes hard and uncomfortable at first.

I am stretching in
my schedule
my flexibility
my relationships
my time
my thoughts
my prayers
my control 
{or lack thereof}

I'm not really mourning what "was", so much...
I see the marks, and I'm pretty sure they will always be a reminder of what got me here.
And "here" is probably not really a final destination, 
but a stop along the way.

There are many unknowns up ahead...
and if I look too far ahead, 
the unknowns are 
daunting
and 
lonely

But I'm pretty confident that the stretch marks of 
today are so that in my tomorrows I can see 
the bigger picture of what God was doing.  

There's no pride in bearing our stretch marks, either on the outside or the inside...but there is a sense of satisfaction that the results were worth the pulling and expanding.

“Challenges make you discover things about yourself that you never really knew. 

They're what make the instrument stretch-what make you go beyond the norm.”

Cicely Tyson 

Favorite moments of the last week:

3 comments:

lindsey said...

You are right the challenges of life do stretch us and sometimes this stretching goes beyond what we could imagine. But to know that our Lord is there all the way is what make it all possible. Have a blessed week!

MamaFish said...

You always make me think... rightly. It's hard to welcome stretching. Good to be reminded that it's for God's glory!

Just a little something from Judy said...

You continue to amaze me with the "gift of writing" God has blessed you with. I am having some of my own "stretching moments" and this has been an inspiration to me today. I keep reminding myself what life is truly all about. Your photography and thoughts expressed make my blog visits here enjoyable and challenging.

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