Over the weekend, as Kieren was driving, I aimlessly scrolling through social media, when I came across a post from a friend who was asking her readers questions to reply about themselves, and I paused.
One of the questions was what do you love most about yourself? But, as I pondered this (I had a lot of years of hating who I was and the body I was in), it shocked me that I began typing a reply and I pressed “send” before I had a chance to second-guess myself. Then I just starred at my answer:
The stretch marks on my stomach because they remind me of God’s goodness
Like what? What happened to the usual answers of “my smile” or “my eyes” etc. Plus, I then felt very vulnerable for the next few minutes before the Holy Spirit spoke to me
I was reminded of all the battles I have faced within my lifetime, and all the different scars that my body has because of them (too many operations, being attacked by a dog, abusive relationships etc.) but then the Holy Spirit showed me times of me crying out to God for a baby, and then the fight I had during pregnancy, to keep my baby girl alive – the stretch marks represent a reminder to me of God’s goodness and His faithfulness of the miracles that occurred during those nine months
I used to hate my stretch marks (as I think most people do) but if you have read my book “Life’s Greatest Battles” I talk about Kieren kissing the battles scars on my stomach and how they represent something significant in my Christian walk
The Holy Spirit then spoke to me the Scripture from Galatians:
“From now on, don’t let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus.”
Galatians 6:17
Friends, I understand that Paul was talking about the persecution he faced, and the scars of those times. However, for me at that second, this Scripture spoke to me so profoundly because God gave me a baby when medicine told me I could not, and therefore, my scars represent the fact that I belong to Jesus
There will be times in our lives when the world will tell us that what we desire is impossible, but I want this to be a reminder, that the battles we sometimes must face, will become a memory that God stood by our sides and we became victorious!
Categories: Galatians
Touched by this blog. My wife and I are both Christians and whilst my blog is about fly fishing, I experience God’s peace in fishing and the scenery and wildlife around me. Keep up with your blogs, I admire your honesty and find them inspiring . God bless
Thanks so much, Mike 🙂 Your words means a lot. God bless ♥️