STRETCH MARKS

Please don’t have anxiety about the two words mentioned in the photo. Hang with me.

As we wrap up the year, I’ve been pondering a lot of areas of my life.
▶️ Marital Health.
▶️ Family Health.
▶️ Relational Health.
▶️ Professional Health.
▶️ Spiritual Health.
▶️ Physical Health.
▶️ Emotional Health.

In each of these areas, I have some reasons to celebrate and evidence of growth. In each of these areas, too, I have some growing to do.

Insert the recurrent theme of STRETCH MARKS.

I am very aware of what causes stretch marks as I have personal experience with them. To seem more “official,” though, I visited the Mayo Clinic and Cleveland Clinic websites to investigate the medical jargon as to why we get them. Essentially, we develop stretch marks on our bodies when there is rapid GROWTH or rapid SHRINKING of our skin.

As we wrap up 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣3️⃣ and prepare to head into 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣4️⃣, it’s easy to get wrapped up in determining New Years’ Resolutions or goals for the year ahead. The Lord gave me my “word” (actually 2 words) for 2024 in the summer and has been preparing me since then. My two words are BIGGER THINGS.

What that means to me is….
Stretch Marks are coming.

There are some things I want to grow in my life. There are also things I want to shrink. Either way – I hope things look differently on 12/31/24 than they did on 01/01/24. Just a few examples….

Marital – I want to have more intentional and uninterrupted time with Kyle (growth) and less impatience over silly things (shrinking).

Family – I want to be present for my kids in this season of life in ways that are meaningful to them (growth) and less being tired because I’ve invested my best elsewhere (shrinking).

Relational – I want to find more intentional ways to celebrate my friends for who they are to me (growth) and work to reduce social anxiety/isolation (shrinking). Yes, that’s a reality for me.

Spiritually – I want to write and publish my first book, rooted in Scripture, to help people grow in their walk with Jesus and relationships with each other (growth), and I want to maintain the discipline of prayer long after 21 days of prayer to reduce being so reactive in prayer (shrinking).

All of these things…..the growth and the shrinking…..should be evident as they happen and change me. Lord, may Your fruit be evident in my life more and more….and may my fleshiness become less and less. (John 3:30)

Where do you need to grow?
Ask Him to show you.
Find accountability to make it reality.

Where do you need to shrink?
Ask Him to show you.
Find accountability to make it reality.

Stretching….
Shrinking…..
Both necessities.

Believing for “bigger things” in 2024. We are #BetterTogether.