Learning Along The Way

Who Does God Say You Are?

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In 100 Days to Brave Annie F. Downs shared a story of a friend who was newly employed at a bank. Her first day was filled with the task of counting money.

Why? To learn to know the real thing. Once you handle the real thing you can tell counterfeit from real.

We need to know what is True about us in order to live a brave life.

How do we know what is True?

We have a guide book with lots of loving encouragement and promises. Truth to know and live out.

I received this beautiful card last year at a retreat I attended in the redwoods of California. Being in that place is a big enough reminder of God’s goodness yet this takeaway has reminded me of God’s love and care on many occasions in the year since.

This list is from ONE place in scripture: Ephesians 1.

Annie mentioned several more places to be reminded. If you are curious, start mining the Word to find the nuggets you need for your own reminding of God’s love for you, of His faithfulness to you, of His provision of courage you need to live a brave life.

Therefore as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved…

Are You Hanging onto Fear?

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Two days this week I came to the computer with ideas about being brave and found I had nothing to say. I was stuck. I told myself its ok come back later, but of course, later never came. I didn’t guard time to write, so time wasn’t there.

I wrestled with why I challenged myself to work through this devotional 100 Days to Brave? I questioned my sanity, my purpose, my raison d’ etre (five years of studying French peeks out on occasion)

I came to an existential crisis point. Why do I want to tell you to let go of what’s holding you back and lean into the unique creation you are? Why do I want to encourage you to be brave, to learn what that looks like in your life, to take a first step?

I want to help women connect with the passions God has placed in them for their good, for other’s good, and most of all, for God’s glory. Click To Tweet

I have been hanging onto fear. Fear that no one will care about this message. Fear that these words go no where, that writing and speaking this message is a waste of time and money. Fear that I’m not listening to God’s Word accurately and I’m doing this for my own selfish gain. Fear of resistance, of ridicule, of rejection.

Getting honest about fear is a bit scary; as I continue to learn about myself through the lens of the Enneagram, it makes more sense why I get scared. At my core, I don’t want to feel pain. I want to have fun. I avoid conflict because conflict is painful and looking at the underside of my emotions is hard work.

But God.

My two favorite words in Scripture. Best search I ever worked through; try it.

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

I came to my time with Him this morning without an agenda. I simply wanted to sit in His Presence and have coffee with Jesus. After I read the portions of Scripture in my Bible reading plan, I read today’s entry for Jesus Calling. 

Take time to be still in My Presence. The more hassled you feel, the more you need this sacred space of communion with Me. Breathe slowly and deeply. Relax in My holy Presence while My Face shines upon you. This is how you receive My Peace, which I always proffer to you.

I got comfortable in my chair, held my warm cup of coffee and sat quietly looking outside through the sliding glass door into our garden space. I watched the changing morning light illumine the persimmon tree in our neighbor’s yard, the orange-red fruit standing out against the green leaves. I noticed a finch search the feeder for just the right seed. What caught my attention was a hummingbird lighting on the bubbling water feature. It dipped its beak into the water hovering slightly above the water spilling over the slick turquoise orb, then all of a sudden, the hummingbird sat in the center of the bubbler and began to take a bath.

The freedom, the enthusiasm, the fearlessness all spoke to me in the hummingbird’s hesitation, then the jumping in. As I watched, these lyrics crept up to my consciousness

So let go my soul and trust in Him

And just like the shifting morning light, the awareness of my fears paled in the Light of this phrase.

So let go my soul and trust in Him

I was being invited forward. Come, Further up and Further in.

The invitation is for you too, my friend.

I see your face in my mind; your eyes rimmed with tears you’re blinking back; your brave smile trembling.

He is for you, just like He’s for me. God wants His daughters to walk in freedom; to be able to live as He has designed each of us; moment by moment learning from Him the unforced rhythms of grace.

The invitation to Come to Me isn’t a one time invitation. Jesus invites us again and again and again. You might take your eyes off of Him for a myriad of reasons; Come to Me remains the same, simple invitation. 

Learn from Me, watch how I do it. 

I’ve been hanging on to fear. I’ve been clinging to things that have weighed me down, hindering me from the life purpose God has given me. 

Right now, I’m choosing to be brave, to share my inner struggles to help you see you’re not alone in yours. The beauty is the precious invitation to Come is whispering at the edge of your conscious thought; listen and respond.

Let go and lean in.

You won’t regret it.

Perhaps you’re wondering how to get started? Or how to get back?  

Call a friend. Message me. Comment below (I read them before they get published so if you don’t want your comment published, tell me.) 

Bravely take the first step.

I leave you with this beautiful offering. Enjoy.

It is Well 

What Does Being Brave Even Look Like?

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Starting the morning with my familiar things around me gives me a sense of place, routine, comfort.

How about you?

It’s a challenge to get outside my comfort zone to go someplace or do something new.

New-ness can be exciting like when an order from Amazon arrives. But new-ness that requires something from me, that can be scary. If it’s scary then the challenge comes to be brave in the face of my fears and in spite of the pit in my stomach.

That’s never easy. But I can tell you something true: I’ve never been disappointed when I’ve let go of my fears and leaned in toward Jesus.

What does that even look like?

It might be saying yes to spending the weekend with mostly strangers, far away from home, sharing hard parts of your story to show that the surpassing power of overcoming, and growing, and healing, belongs to God and not to us.

In hopes of learning the Way to let go and lean in, after the wonderfully challenging and filling weekend away, yesterday I started reading a devotional book called 100 Days to Brave by Annie F. Downs. The subtitle says Devotions for Unlocking Your Most Courageous Self.

Doesn’t that sound promising?

Annie is sharing from her life and pointing her readers to the One who calls us forward, who gives us the strength and courage to be our authentic self in our circumstances.

Seeing other people be brave makes me want to be brave too. Annie F. Downs

Being authentic, without putting on a false “I’m okay” front, is hard. We fear what people think about us. Will they accept me? Will they reject me? Why does that matter?

It matters because God has created us with a desire for love and belonging. Anything that puts those two desires at risk is scary.

The blank page can be scary for a writer. But if this is the work I am called to do then this is the place I need to be brave. I know God wants me to tell my story so that you can be encouraged to be brave in yours, too.

What is the thing in life that scares you?

Whatever it is that is scary, God has already been there and knows how it’s all going to turn out.

I’m going to keep on this journey, learning to let go of fear and expectation and learning to lean in toward Jesus.

Want to join me on this journey of 100 Days to Brave?

I’d love the companionship!

What Does it Mean to Learn from Jesus?

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If you’ve visited before, you’re used to me musing on passages of Scripture and trying to see how these sacred words apply to life today. I’ve been unpacking Matthew 11:28-30 going phrase by phrase.

This week’s phrase is the crux of discipleship.

“…learn from Me…”

What does it mean to learn from Jesus?  How does one do that exactly?

It’s simple and hard at the same time.  Remember the yoke? Getting in step with Jesus, leaning in and going along the Way that He has started for you, staying in step, getting back in step when you stumble (not IF…WHEN…)

It's guaranteed that we will get out of step with Jesus. He is mindful of our frame. Jesus doesn't want to leave you behind, or walk away from you. He has promised never to leave you or forget you, so when you get out of step He patiently… Click To Tweet

This act of learning from Jesus is a life long process and an integral part of our journey here. Don’t expect to do it perfectly. But do expect Him love and encourage you along the Way.

Out of curiosity I googled that very phrase: learn from Jesus.  As I expected, the results were fascinating and diverse.

I’m including three links for you to explore as you consider how to learn from Jesus.

10 Bible Verses About Learning From Jesus

5 Life Lessons I Learned from Jesus 

These first two are written from Christ followers. This next doesn’t name Jesus as part of the Godhead but references scripture so Truth is being told.

21 Life Lessons Even Non-Christians Can Learn From Jesus

Clearly there is a lot we can learn from Jesus.  He offers Himself to us moment by moment by the empowering Presence of God in the person of the Holy Spirit.  He does the work.

Our one job is to stay close.

 

Are You Weary? Burned out? The #1 Way to find Relief

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I hope you’ve been pondering the invitation Jesus spoke that is recorded in the gospel of Matthew chapter 11 verses 28-30. Looking back: Come to Me…

This week’s phrase is “…all who are weary and burdened…”

The invitation is comprehensive. ALL. There are none who are excluded from this invitation to Come. Every.Single. Human. Being. Throughout. History and in the Present and Yet to be born. ALL.

This reminds me of a concert verse ( a verse that speaks of this topic in another way, enriching the meaning and reinforcing the message)

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

The concert term? Whoever. It’s another way of saying ALL.

(on a side note: a search for the word ALL in scripture is time consuming but has had a lasting impact on my understanding of the character of God)

Weary and burdened may seem redundant but they actually emphasize different aspects of tired and weighed down.  Weary is a present tense verb, which can also be translated exhausted. Exhausted with trying hard to live up to expectations. Exhausted with trying to solve problems, do good work, be the best version of ourselves…all in our own strength.

Photo by Yolanda Leyva on Unsplash

 

Anyone?

Burdened in this context is the word for putting something on the back of an animal to carry the weight. Jesus was speaking specifically about the religious rules that the Pharisees had added to the Law; these burdens were unnecessary to say the least. Here Jesus is telling the people He sees they’re exhausted from trying to deal with all the brokenness in their lives and He sees the unnecessary performance rules put on top of them by the Pharisees.

What about us today? Where are you weary of the try-hard-life?  What unnecessary burdens from a broken understanding of Christianity do you bear?

Jesus sees. He cares.

Come to Me All who are weary and burdened…

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Sabbath Reflections

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Have you ever signed up for being critiqued? You said to yourself, “I want to get better at ______; so I am going to ask others to tell me how I can improve.” Have you done that with someone who is a professional in the area you want to improve?

I get a sick stomach ache when I think about it.

I did that. I attended a Writers’ Bootcamp in 2016 and asked for critique of my writing. I submitted myself to another’s examination and judgment. What I found was not only helpful but encouraging.

That person has included me as part of his launch team for his soon to release book, Learning to Speak God from Scratch.

His work is a thoughtful examination of words that have been deemed sacred in various religious practices and have become words tossed about without the sacrosanct respect said words deserve.

Sabbath is one of those words for me.

I grew up in the ‘Chr-easter’ tradition: parents who attended church as children without developing much faith around the practice of going to church, and who chose to raise their own children with knowledge of the two “important” Christian holidays of Christmas and Easter. I heard the important stories of God and Jesus, but missed the why of value in knowing about them.

Head versus Heart. Religion versus Faith.

I came to faith in Christ at 23 after a lot of searching for love in all the wrong places. I was standing outside at Aztec Center near midnight, sweeping the patio and emptying trash cans; the duties of a night job I had while I was pursuing my teaching credential. I stood silent on a cold February night looking up at the stars and simply asked, “If you’re real God, would you let me know?”

The response was equally silent but immediate: two stars that were parallel and looked liked eyes looking at me, twinkled. And my heart expanded and I believed. That was it.

I remember that day like it was yesterday. The exact date? Nope. But the fact that I asked for a sign and got a response was enough to convince me.

The people I knew who were Christians also practiced a literal religion; do what was spelled out in the Bible and all of life will go well.

I’ve never been very good at following people’s rules; I wonder, what about all the other possible responses? Click To Tweet

Learning to love Sabbath was one of those to-dos.

Where are you with practicing Sabbath?

Is it a burden? A religious convention meant for others to follow? An old-fashioned word that has little meaning in today’s immediate-oriented and production-driven culture?

My learning along the Way has shown me Sabbath is a gift of rest.

I tried to make it a ritual and hated it. I prepped all the meals the day before, I made sure all the clothes were ready for church the next day, I ran myself ragged in order to rest. I wanted Sabbath to be a wonderful practice but how I was approaching it wasn’t working. When I recognized it to be something to help me slow down, to notice God at work and take time to re-create, the meaning of Sabbath was transformed for me.

In my month of Showing Up I am trying to put into practice things I’ve attempted and dropped at various points in life. I invite you to join me in this week’s challenge. I’m going to sort through ideas and stuff to begin getting rid of what doesn’t fit anymore.  What ideas, what stories, what things, don’t work in this season of life?

The stories I tell myself, the items I hang on to, the clothes that I keep for that ‘someday’ are all going to be critiqued and evaluated; looking for what is valued, deemed worthy of keeping and what needs to be given away.

Practicing Sabbath rest has given me room for reflecting on what is important and what is no longer of value for me.

Are you willing to take inventory? Have you already made this a practice in your life? I’d love to hear how practicing Sabbath rest has opened up your awareness.

How Do You RSVP to This Invitation?

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(photo credit: Glenn Carstens Peters via unsplash)

When I discovered this photo a tonic chord resounded in my soul. I saw it and sighed. There is such peace, such calm, a connection with the land, provision & possibility, I knew I needed to make use of it.

I spent the summer meditating and digging into three verses from the gospel of Matthew. This passage is often quoted and for good reason. It holds a beautiful invitation into this With God life:

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Simply the first 3 words of Matthew 11:28-30. And yet there is no simplicity in the RSVP to this invitation.

In an RSVP we either say Yes or we say No.

Yes I will Come to You Jesus. I will come in the morning and hang out with You in silence with my coffee. Yes I will come to You when I drive on the freeway or when I take the kids to school or on my run or as I do dishes, laundry, answer email, wipe noses, change diapers, clean the house, whatever.

OR

No I can’t come to You Jesus. I’m too busy. I’ve got to take care of all the things before I can consider sitting down to read my Bible.

This invitation isn’t the Salvation invitation. This is the How You Live Your Day Invitation.

Theology calls it Sanctification.

How do You RSVP to this invitation?

If you’re anything like me, the answer changes moment by moment. Sometimes Yes Sometimes No I’m off doing my own thing.

I pray that I am more like Jesus today than I was yesterday and that I will become more like Him tomorrow than I am today. But I am easily distracted. In fact, I am convinced that I can distract myself! I don’t need anyone else to do that for me.

I desire to be saying a sincere Yes to this beautiful, simple and yet incredibly challenging invitation.

How do You RSVP to this invitation?

Speaking of invitations, I am taking the #Write31Days challenge again. This year I am writing daily over at Lisa Lewis Coaching. I’d love to have you visit and of course, share your thoughts.

 

A Letter to My 25 year-old Self

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I spent time with a young friend online the other day, listening to her words and hearing her heart: the things that are bringing her joy and those that weigh her down. Singleness is filled with so many possibilities, life directions, places to live, all of it. I remember well that season of life. When I look back to my own single life, I don’t do so longingly; it’s more with the eyes of ‘if only’.

Since ‘if only’ and ‘what if?’ are not helpful in taking action in life, I’m learning to let the ‘if only’ statements go, to lean in to ‘what is’ and the results of choices of that season. No one has perfect knowledge except God alone, so we begin taking steps of faith, trusting He will do what only He can do, causing it all to work together for good, for those who love Him, and He has called according to His good purposes.

I think what I’d want to say to my 25-year-old, single self if I could write a letter with three decades of life lived; looking over the path I’ve traveled.

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(photo: green chameleon via unsplash)

Oh, sweet woman, 

You are good and beautiful in the eyes of the only one who really matters. Don’t let the imperfect image of God that you see in M be the way you see God. Jesus doesn’t judge you. Remember the Woman at the Well? Or the Woman caught in adultery? No judgment.

Jesus doesn’t compare the condition of your physical body to any others He has created. You are uniquely beautiful as you are. He’s given you gifts and talents in a combination that no one else in His creation has ever had, nor ever will. Let that rest on you sweet girl. 

Get close to Him. He alone will sustain you in the years to come. No man will be able to hold your heart, heal your broken places or fulfill your little girl dreams. Only Jesus. He is enough. In fact, they need to learn to lean in with Jesus themselves. However, that my dear is not your job. Let God be God. Remember what Jesus said to Peter when he asked about John? “What’s that to you? You follow Me.” Stop being impetuous like Peter and grow in your faith as Peter did. 

Get outside regularly in His creation. You know you’ve always loved the beach; He put that appreciation in your heart. Not all His girls care about nature the way you do. Don’t lose sight of how you are filled up with awareness of God when you walk in the mountains or by the sea or through your garden. He is with you, present to your thoughts and longings and caring for you deeply. Look to Jesus.

Walking with Jesus doesn’t make the pain go away or magically keep bad things from happening. In fact, He told us to remember we will have hard things in this world. But the good news? He has overcome all the bad things and has the power to help us through them. One.Step.At.A.Time.

You’ll need to remember that dear one. There will be a lot of unknowns coming your way. Your marriage will fall apart. M will leave you with your unborn son. Your theology will be faulty but Jesus doesn’t falter. He will walk beside you as you continue to take feeble steps toward Him. Keep walking. There are no unknowns to God. He’ll give you just enough Light for the next step. You and your baby will be ok. You’ll be loved by some amazing emissaries of His love. 

Let go of the expectations of others that keep you from looking honestly and humbly at who you are. Those expectations keep you from accepting how you’re made. You are here for purposes much bigger than the small potatoes that some people want you to believe. Let go of the lies that you’ve been told that you are not enough. Or the lies that you are too big or ask too much of people. You are enough in Him. Let it be.

Remember two things: Love God and Love Others. That’s it.

Oh, how I wish I had had all this wisdom at the ripe old age of 25. This is why I am passionate about being available to speak into young women’s lives. Not because I have all the answers. No. But I know the One who does. I am confident in His love for each one of us. Just as we are. In the messy middle of our journey toward the Father heart of God. Click To Tweet

Do you have someone speaking into your life? Are you willing to be honest and risk the vulnerability that sharing your heart brings? Don’t miss the opportunity of sharing your story and hearing another’s story. You might just see how your two stories fit into God’s big story together.

Why Seeking Clarity is Like Hunting Unicorns

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I’m ending an eight year search for something illusive and perhaps mythical—clarity for my next season of life. The search began when Deep Grief bullied its way into my life. I’ve written about that here; no need to dwell there. Today’s focus: learning along the Way.

Clarity isn’t a thing to pursue, a place to arrive or a point on your calendar. There aren’t six steps to accomplish or a course to take with a certificate of completion.

Clarity searched for in those ways harkens to looking for unicorns.

unicorn

 

Clarity dawns when taking an action step. The steps look different for all of us; moving forward, trying something new, remain the critical factors.

In 2008 I began the illusive search for clarity. I made a rapid and unplanned exit from my position as teacher and co-director at SLO Classical Academy.  Disorientation and lots of questions overwhelmed me. My search for clarity took a circuitous route; listening to two voices of therapy and coaching helped uncover common threads in my life that I clung to in my disorientation. I used those threads to begin a new garment for the new season.

After two years of pursuit I gained certification as a life coach. This accomplishment didn’t usher in the clarity I sought.

I sought purpose; not something simply to keep me busy in the impending empty-nest season. I battled internal gremlins voicing lack of worthiness for my out of the box choice career choice. Yet as I worked with clients, common phrases began to surface; phrases affirming the presence I offer them and the gift of listening well.

I love working with people as they seek next steps in their journeys.  Inner life questions of purpose and calling can feel mysterious. Learning to ‘let your life speak’ as Parker Palmer so eloquently writes, allows search and discovery of common threads woven through your life.

Seeking clarity is not the same.

forest(photo cred:https://unsplash.com/@samscrim )

We’re promised light for the next step; a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path. We will hear a quiet whisper that tells us this is the way walk in it.  But clarity is a modern construct and remains illusive like the hunt for unicorns.

I spent years seeking clarity; crying out to God for discernment, not wanting to waste the precious time I have left here. No beacon illumined my path; no voice from on high spoke light into my darkness.  Had I missed a memo? Was my faith fractured?

Clarity showed itself as I took one step at a time. Clarity revealed itself as I climbed steep paths, looking back to see the evident clues along the Way.  Clarity continues to show up as I take a step of faith on undefined paths following the Leader as He calls me forward.

Clarity is not impossible or imaginary like hunting unicorns.  But similar to the mythical unicorn, clarity is not a thing to be achieved; it reveals itself rather than submitting to a dogged pursuit.

In what area of your life have you been hunting for clarity?

Purpose? Career? Relationship?

I’d love to help make your search shorter.

Common Threads in this Grand Adventure

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A house was being built in my backyard. To my 5 year old way of seeing, it was giant. A real door with two real windows faced front; a real shingled roof, four wood sided walls and two more windows enclosed the house. But the best part? An entire wall with a green chalkboard for me to play school.
My dad’s dad built this for me. Me. He used all reclaimed materials from other torn down construction. It even had a beautiful hardwood floor. Grandfather loved to make things and he made them with excellence. I still remember walking into the finished playhouse as the grown ups called it. At 5 the height of the ceiling was so far away I felt the immensity of the single room. The strong smell of fresh paint and resurfaced floor boards was somehow comforting. But gazing at the wall of chalkboard was what inspired awe. The brand new white chalk lying in the tray beckoned me. All the ideas of what I could do seemed to wash over me all at once.
I grabbed hold of my Grandfather around his knees and hugged him so hard he swayed a little from the force. I told him thank you and then ran in the house, into my bedroom. I imagine my Grandfather and Dad were standing there bewildered but it made sense when a moment later I came running back out with an armful of stuffed animals.
Grandfather opened the playhouse door, held it wide and said, “School is in session!”

How did he know?

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(an Easter photo circa 1961)

I spent hours teaching my students their ABCs and singing songs to them; acting out what I had learned in Kindergarten each day. I used that chalkboard to write my letters, ever so slowly, so my students could see how they were made; writing numbers the same, slow way; turning to ask if they could see alright. I was sharing what I was learning along the way.

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(chalkboards + me = magnetic attraction; 1962)

So much can be said of the sweet knowing of the man who was my Grandfather. I’ll save that for another time.

It’s fun to reflect on this wonderful memory and to see the common thread that has run through my life these 53 years later. I have consistently loved learning. I have consistently loved sharing what I’ve learned (not always appreciated or graciously delivered; but I digress) Best of all, I have my grandparents’ chalkboard hanging in our tiny house.

We all have threads woven into the fabric of our being; evidence of our unique make up. Sometimes we lose sight of those threads that have been a part of us since our personality started to show itself. When we lose sight of the common threads that make us who we are, we can often lose our way.

Is that you today? Have you lost a sense of who you are? What makes you, You?

Life can be so full of doing for others that we get distracted from the threads that are life giving to us. I want to be clear; I don’t think this life is all about figuring out what we each need and want. But I do think our journey here is for a purpose. Gaining a sense of that purpose can be found in the common threads woven through our lives.

How can you gain that sense of purpose, a sense of self, if you don’t know where you lost it?

Great question! You go adventuring! Exploring! Excavating!

In the coming few days I’m going to share a new resource that can help you in this adventure of re-discovery and connection.

You don’t want to miss out!  If you haven’t already subscribed to my blog, please do that now so you’ll stay in the know for the next step in this Grand Adventure!

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