Reap What You Sow Mondays with Tony™: Stretch Marks of the Spirit: How Spiritual Growth Comes with Visible and Invisible Signs—Proof That God Is Expanding You

Tyrone Tony Reed Jr.
Jul 14, 2025
6 min read

Welcome back, Soldiers of Light Against Darkness™, to another Reap What You Sow Mondays with Tony™. Today, we enter into a sacred conversation that not many want to have: what does it look like when God is stretching you? Not the polished, praised version of growth. But the raw, behind-the-scenes work of spiritual expansion that leaves behind marks—both visible and invisible.

Just like the natural body, growth in the spirit leaves evidence. Not all evidence is glamorous. Not all evidence is painless. But every mark means you were made bigger.

🌾 Growth Has a Price

We love to shout about the harvest, the favor, the overflow. But before there was blessing, there was breaking. Before the platform, there was the pulling apart of your comfort zone. And before the anointing increased, there was a stretch.

📖 Isaiah 54:2 (NIV) "Enlarge the place of your tent, stretch your tent curtains wide, do not hold back; lengthen your cords, strengthen your stakes."

Stretching is not punishment—it’s preparation. It means God is making room for something new: more purpose, more impact, more wisdom, more trust.

And like physical stretch marks, spiritual stretch marks are often:

Hidden beneath the surface – People might not see it, but God knows the cost. Growth happens deep within, beyond what’s visible to the human eye.
Proof of pressure – Where there’s been stretching, there’s been resistance. God’s refining process isn’t painless, but it’s purposed.
A sign that something grew inside of you – You didn’t stay stagnant. You allowed God to plant, nurture, and expand something divine within.

🧠 What Causes Stretch Marks in the Spirit?

1. Sudden Expansion

When God begins to move quickly, opportunities and responsibilities can pile on fast. You find yourself speaking in rooms you prayed to enter—but didn’t expect so soon. Your schedule, capacity, and even your mental peace are tested. This fast-paced growth stretches you in faith and flexibility.

2. Deep Obedience

God sometimes asks you to give up what you love, to trust Him without understanding. It stretches your willingness to obey Him over your emotions. Saying "yes" when your flesh wants to say "no" is a mark of spiritual maturity.

3. Delayed Answers

The longer the wait, the more the stretching. You prayed, fasted, obeyed—yet nothing seems to shift. God uses delays to expand your patience, deepen your endurance, and grow your trust muscle. Waiting with expectation builds spiritual weight.

4. Uncomfortable Assignments

God often places you in situations that demand more than you think you have. Whether it’s leading people, loving difficult individuals, or speaking when you'd rather be silent—these assignments stretch your faith, your identity, and your reliance on God.

📖 2 Corinthians 4:17 (NLT) "For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever."

🔥 Biblical Examples of Spiritual Stretching

🙇‍♂️ Abraham: The Father of Faith

He was asked to leave his land, wait for a child until old age, and even lay that promised child on the altar.

Stretch mark: Trusting God when logic failed. Abraham had to walk in blind faith. His entire legacy hinged on obedience that didn’t make natural sense.

🛡 Esther: For Such a Time as This

She was chosen for royalty but had to risk death to speak truth and save her people.

Stretch mark: Speaking up when silence would’ve been safer. She stretched into courage by confronting power with purpose.

🐟 Peter: The Risk-Taking Disciple

He stepped out of the boat. He preached with boldness. He failed. He got back up.

Stretch mark: Faith in motion, even through failure. Peter’s mistakes didn’t disqualify him—they were evidence of stretching.

🤰 Mary: Carried the Savior

Before she was celebrated, she was scandalized. Her body stretched, but so did her spirit.

Stretch mark: Carrying a call bigger than her understanding. She was willing to be stretched beyond comfort to fulfill God's promise.

💡 Signs You’re Being Stretched by God

You’re uncomfortable in places that used to feel normal – What once satisfied no longer fills you. You crave more depth, more purpose.
You feel exposed, vulnerable, or unqualified – The assignment seems bigger than your resume, but God keeps pulling you forward.
You sense God calling you to things beyond your capacity – Your spirit feels both excited and terrified. This tension is holy.
You’re being pushed into deeper faith, prayer, and surrender – Shallow won’t satisfy anymore. You know surface-level isn’t enough.
Old ways of thinking no longer serve you – Mindsets and habits that used to work now feel restrictive. God is renewing your mind.

📖 Romans 12:2 (ESV) "Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind..."

Stretching changes how you think, how you respond, and how you trust.

🧵 Invisible Stretch Marks (Internal Growth)

These aren’t posted on social media. These aren’t shouted from stages. But they are sacred:

Forgiving someone who never said sorry – Releasing bitterness frees your spirit to grow. It’s hard, but it’s holy.
Showing up every day when you want to quit – Consistency in hard seasons builds spiritual muscle.
Staying silent when you could clap back – Self-control is one of the rarest and most mature fruits of the Spirit.
Praying for someone who betrayed you – Intercession heals wounds pride would keep open.
Taking the high road in a low moment – When you rise above retaliation, God elevates your character.

📖 James 1:4 (NIV) "Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything."

🎯 Visible Stretch Marks (External Shifts)

A new role you didn’t feel ready for – Leadership without certainty forces reliance on God’s strength, not your own.
A loss that shifted your entire outlook – Grief has a way of deepening compassion and realigning priorities.
A move, job change, or ministry assignment – Changing seasons force you to develop new roots in new soil.
A public test of character – How you respond under pressure shows what you’re truly made of.
Leading when you used to follow – Being stretched into leadership requires new levels of wisdom, humility, and courage.

These public moments are proof of private pressure and heavenly training.

🧠 The Enemy Will Try to Shame Your Stretch

The enemy will whisper, “Look at your scars. Look at what didn’t go right. Look at what it cost you.”

But here’s the truth: Stretch marks are not shame marks. They’re survival marks. They’re obedience marks.

They say:

I didn’t break when I could have.
I stayed when I wanted to run.
I grew where I once withered.

📖 Galatians 6:17 (NLT)"I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus."

🛠 What To Do While You’re Being Stretched

Lean into prayer – Let God hear your honesty. Tell Him about your fears and fatigue. He can handle it.
Get around faith-filled people – You need those who can remind you who you are and pray you through your stretch.
Write it down – Document how you’re being shaped. Journaling makes the stretch visible and the growth traceable.
Speak the Word – Declare God’s promises daily. Scripture is the anchor in the pull.
Trust the process – If God led you to it, He’ll lead you through it. Don’t despise the discomfort.

📝 Reflection Questions

What area of my life feels stretched right now?
How is God using pressure to make room for new growth?
What “marks” has my obedience left?
Do I view my discomfort as punishment or preparation?
Am I resisting the stretch or cooperating with it?

🗣 Declaration

I will not fear the stretch. I will not hide my scars. God is expanding me for greater influence, deeper faith, and eternal impact. My discomfort is not in vain. I bear the stretch marks of spiritual growth—and I wear them with honor.

🙏🏾 Closing Prayer

Lord, stretch me with purpose. Grow me with care. Shape me through Your hands and not the world’s opinions. Help me not to shrink back when You are trying to expand me. Teach me to treasure the scars that came from walking in obedience. May my life be proof that when You stretch us, You also sustain us. In Jesus’ name, Amen.