In the Old Testament, there are stories of people building monuments to God to serve as reminders of His faithfulness to them. Here is an example from Joshua, 4:19 - 24:

19 On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal on the eastern border of Jericho. 20 And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. 21 He said to the Israelites, "In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, 'What do these stones mean?' 22 tell them, 'Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.' 23 For the LORD your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The LORD your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea [a] when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. 24 He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God."

As many of our friends and family know, Josh and I had a very long and very difficult time starting our family. Josh and I talked once about how our children are now a living monument of God's faithfulness to us. We only have to look at them to be reassured of God's plan and timing.

But looking at my beautiful children is one thing. Being happy about the stretchmarks and my post-pregnancy body that I have as a result of two pregnancies is quite another.

I was fortunate enough to read a recent post by Richella about her birthmark. And apparently a comment I left her resonated with her. But as is often the case, it's easy for me to share those thoughts with someone else. Quite another to apply the lessons to myself.

There is nothing I'm going to be able to do about my stretchmarks, unless I decide someday to spend a lot of money on cosmetic surgery. But what if, instead of seeing something ugly that I want to wish away - what if I can view those scars as something good. Something pure. Something lovely. Something praiseworthy. A constant reminder to trust in God's love for me.

Maybe I can be beautiful because of, not in spite of the stretchmarks and all of the experiences that led up to them.