Learning Along The Way

What Do You Expect From Learning Along the Way?

By

I want to say a quick Welcome to those who have recently joined the community here as we learn along the Way.

It’s been awhile since I touched base like this; I decided it’s overdue!

Photo by Artem Bali on Unsplash

You can expect a weekly email digest with a glimpse of each post I’ve published during the week. You’re always welcome to go directly to the website during the week, but I want to keep the email clutter low. You’ll get one email from me each week on Monday morning.

Some things I want to commit to:

Encouragement

I make it my focus to bring a bit of myself when I write but also a bit of the One to Whom my life is oriented: the triune God, Father, Son & Holy Spirit. I have found in my journey that so many of my stressors and worries and fears can all be calmed and made new in Christ. I want that for everyone.

Inspiration

I desire to help you my readers to see the Way open up before you; to be able to see possibilities of how your life may expand beyond the limits you are experiencing. Like Emily Dickinson

I Dwell in Possibilities

Photo by Bernard Hermant on Unsplash

Some things I hope for:

Growing Community

Women need each other. We see and engage differently than men; no matter how terrific your SO may be, as a man he just doesn’t always “get it”. It’s good to have a community where you can be heard and valued without too much clarification.

Humor

Photo by Will Myers on Unsplash

I think we need to laugh more! This is an area where I am still learning so if you are a person who has humor coming out of your pores, I would love to have you bring it in our comments!

Confidentiality

As a coach, I live by confidentiality. I want you to know if you want to comment on a post, but don’t want others to see your words, I moderate the comments before they’re posted. You have freedom to share with me; I won’t share your thoughts if you don’t want me to.

Engagement

I post on other social media outlets: Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest buttons are on my website if you’d like to join me there. I’d love that! The more the merrier!

I would love to hear what you desire and expect from reading my words. Many of you have heard me speak at an event or MOPS, where I shared about margin, creating balance, or as I used to tell our sons, “make wise choices”. All of these themes are entry points for me in connecting the dots of work, life and faith to inspire you to live your one with-God life wholeheartedly.

 

Being Selfish Doesn’t Work

By

 

There have been dark times for me in the past 9 years. Loss and the accompanying grief were not easy companions. Their presence was disorienting.

As a result, I’ve been stuck in the slough of despond.

 

Being stuck is a place that a coach can speak into a client’s life. Listening to the favorites, the desires and perhaps forgotten dreams all make for excellent material to construct action steps; steps forward away from being stuck.

Now in the messy middle of sorting through what is important to carry forward and what is not, I’ve learned some things about myself that shine light on the dark places.

SO what I am learning along the Way is that being selfish doesn’t work.

I’ve selfishly hidden in pain; hidden from others who would be generous with encouragement if they only knew. That’s the dark side of me.

On the Light side I’ve been wired for change. I’m a learner and activator with a large dose of restorative, with empathy and relator thrown in. I’m an ENFJ and my DISC profile is I/D. My Enneagram result is 3 =The Achiever or The Performer. I’m an inventory junky!

What difference does all of this information make in day to day life?

All these details helped me get to know how God has wired me. I’ve spent the past 9 years wrestling with the brokenness or downsides of life, looking to Him to heal the places where I’ve worked to cover the internal wounds. He has done His work. I am more fully who He has made me to be.

So now I’m writing and reading my way forward. So many great books! I’m currently looking at a classical work, John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress; a work of allegory written at a time of imprisonment for Bunyan and a much used tool of explication of the Bible.

Screen Shot 2016-07-22 at 6.44.41 PM

It’s valuable to see our story within the Greater Story. Click To Tweet

Why? Because we each have a part to play. An important part to play. When we step into the yoke with Jesus and He bears the weight, we step forward and lean in to keep in step with Him. Our part is to follow along the furrows He chooses for us to plow; the relationships He brings our way, the lives He desires us to impact for Kingdom building, simply by being who we are: God’s man or woman in the circumstances where we currently find ourselves.

Being present to our life circumstances and not looking to the sides of the furrows or off at the green grass not quite in our reach is part of our great work. It is a simple life. We’re the ones who over complicate things.

God has given us Himself, His Spirit and power to live out this life which He has provided. He loves us with a never ending love, He forgives us time and again as we gaze longingly at other things instead of fixing our gaze upon the Only One Who loves us perfectly.

Important Reminders.

Whatever is true, whatever is noble,whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.

We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

He sings over us.

He is our shield and defender.

He is our provider and protector. 

I speak Truth to myself to bring my gaze back to Center; back to the One Who loves me best.

Loss was my experience. I recognize each of us experience hard companions differently. When I bear witness to another’s loss now, I am quick to empathize where before I knew none.

What about you? How have you gotten back on track after being disoriented? You might speak light into someone’s dark place by sharing what God has brought you through.

Being selfish doesn’t work.

I’d love to hear what you’ve learned!

1,2,3 Deedle Deedle Dee (3 New Ideas for You)

By

You may have noticed the name of my website; chosen specifically to fit the way I move through the world. Funny thing that still surprises my me-centered world: not everyone is like me! I forget we don’t all learn the same way, we don’t all care about the same things and we’re not motivated in the same ways.

So here I am, learning along the way. And I still get excited to share what I learn, like I am still an eager child in a classroom frantically waving my hand, hoping against hope that you’ll get excited too; that you’ll be encouraged or challenged as I was when I learned this new thing or read this new book or saw this new movie.

Maybe you get excited by some of things I share, and perhaps you’re not all interested. That’s okay really. I just hope you’ll keep stopping by to see if there might be something you are interested in hearing about. In my continued passion for learning I’ve gotten derailed lately from the sharing what I’ve learned; I’ve started telling myself no one cares but me, so why bother writing these things out anyway?

And then I tell myself truth: my story matters. And so does yours. How I see and think may resonate with you and give expression to a thought or feeling that you’ve held but hadn’t brought to the surface yet.

So I write again.

I learned there’s a name for what I really like to do; curate.

 Curator–a person who selects content for presentation, as on a website.

I love to curate information, distill, share and recommend. I’d rather point to others’ works and how they’ve impacted me; how I think you would benefit from reading/hearing/learning from them, too.

Today I learned three new things! This is a big day and it’s only midday!

#1 I learned that when you risk speaking about a fragile part of yourself, people respond gently and with grace; way differently than I imagine.

Then later in catching up with email I read what Michael Hyatt had to say about a new book, Scary Close by Donald Miller. I haven’t read it yet but from the post I’m intrigued. Eager to learn more…

 

street love gift session 3

#2 When I let my fear of failure take the stage I don’t fully show up for myself or others. My fears cause me to veil myself, being somewhat myself but not fully myself. I heard last Sunday that the opposite of Faith isn’t Doubt. The opposite of Faith is Fear. So when any fear that I have is allowed to step forward and lead me then I am not believing God is big enough or strong enough or faithful enough or whatever enough. I don’t like that option. So I practiced #1 today. And I was encouraged. My brokenness isn’t pretty but God can bring His beauty out of it. He can do the same with you.

#3 Reading the words of others on the path to God’s Heart can shine light on my next step. True confession: I don’t read blogs daily. I make time for blog reading regularly but not daily. And yet, I am often blessed, encouraged or challenged by the words of fellow bloggers. Two days ago, over at A Holy Experience, Ann Voskamp wrote about failing at Lent. Kind of a funny thought really but true to her form of expression, I was caught off guard. This quote…

 It is an irrefutable law: One needs to be dispossessed of all the possessions that possess us — before one can be possessed of God.

Let the things of this world fall away so the soul can fall in love with God. 

I have learned the practice of spiritual habits is so important; during Lent I especially want to enter into what God is already doing. Being reminded again of how I cling to the familiar, to people and things of this world, being possessed by them, really took me by surprise today.

 #1 risk being vulnerable

#2 take fear down by building trust in God

#3 read to be encouraged to grow.

 

There you go! 1,2,3. Deedle deedle dee!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunday Celebrations (Part 2)

By

Sundays during Lent are times to remember.  Remember and Celebrate the gift of salvation achieved through Christ’s sacrifice and miracle of Resurrection.  So in my blogging today I am completing what was begun last week: the story of a new life direction.

In my post here we began following an imaginary creek; my story answering the really great question ‘Why “Learning Along the Way” is my business name’.  It’s time to share the rest of the story.

For the ten years from 1997 to 2007 I was a busy momma.  Privileged to be a stay at home Mom, raising two sons, homeschooling, volunteering, gardening, canning, attending sporting events, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, music lessons, AWANA and all the things one might imagine fills the life of a wife and mother.  Whew!  I’m tired reading this partial list!  It was a full ten years but not just full with time commitments.  It was a period of life full of learning, full of love as I watched two boys grow to men, and full of loss as I learned to let go.

In 2007 tragedy struck my life.  My mom became suddenly ill, was hospitalized and within two weeks passed away.  Nine months later, my dad committed suicide.  It was at this junction that the apple cart of my life was overturned.  I have written of this season before,  so I won’t take the time now but would love for you to have the full perspective if you’re interested.

After these big losses and forced letting go, I began working with a counselor for healing past hurts and a Life Coach for personal growth.  Two crucial, yet opposite, aspects of life being worked on simultaneously: looking back and looking forward.  It was an intense year and a half, but oh so fruitful.  Out of this time came the realization that a new chapter of my life was beginning.

I knew I didn’t want to simply “put my life back together”.  I wanted God to be the One to put my life together.  The apple cart filled with what He wanted in it.  I prayed.  I sought wise counsel.

I loved the process of being coached. It was action oriented and so uplifting!  I began coursework to become a life coach myself.  In one of the courses we were to come up with a name for our business as well as what we wanted to have as a niche, a corner of the coaching market if you will.  Those were big ideas!

I wanted my business to accurately reflect me.  I wanted my clients to get to know a little about their coach.  I recognized that my business was going to be best represented by what I am most passionate about: learning; learning how to live my life following Jesus and giving Him the credit, the glory.  Hence, Learning along the Way.  His Way.

We can live our life doing all we can to have safety and security.  We can be honest and moral people.  But are we living our life following?  Or living our life carefully to not make bad decisions or mistakes?  To manage damage control when carefully scripted lives unravel without reason?

The focus of ‘being in control’ is a very common focus for women.  There are lots of reasons for that desire; I won’t explore them now. But recognizing the desire and how it affects all of life is a step toward changing, learning along the Way.

I would love to talk with you about making those changes in your life; to coach you through transformation as you learn and grow in Christ.  It would be a holy privilege.

Won’t you take that next step in your journey?  Click over here to contact me.  The first session is complimentary!  What’s there to lose?

 

Sunday Celebrations (part 1)

By

 

During the season of Lent, Sundays are not counted as part of the 40 days.  Sundays are celebrations of the Resurrection, of new life.  Since I am committed to write (and post) daily during this season, I am going to share a story today and next Sunday that some of you may not know.

Someone asked why I had chosen Learning Along the Way as my business name; it’s certainly a mouthful!  The reason is not a short answer, unless I just say ‘it’s meaningful to me’ which isn’t much of an answer.  I decided the answer to why “Learning Along The Way” would best come as the name itself, in a story learned along the way.

Like a narrow creek through the woods joining into a river, this story has a beginning, takes some turns, meanders a bit, disappears for awhile and pops up again just before pouring into its purpose of joining the river.  I hope like a leaf on the surface you are carried along, enjoying the journey.

Sixteen years ago our family attended Mount Hermon’s Family Camp for the first time.  The keynote speaker was musician and author, John Fischer.  One of the days John shared his testimony and that included knowing Paul Stookey, of Peter, Paul and Mary fame.  This was exciting to me for two reasons:

I started playing the guitar in 1969 because of music like Peter, Paul and Mary;  and during my college years I had been asked on many occasions to play guitar and sing in the weddings of friends and the song requested again and again? The Wedding Song by Paul Stookey.   I asked John if he still had contact with Paul and he did.  I told him my excitement about his connection and he kindly gave me Paul’s email address. When we got home from the wonderful week of Family Camp I wrote an email to Paul Stookey, thanking him for his faith and writing such a great, worshipful song.

That was the extent of it. Me being me.  An encourager. No expectations.

What happened a week later surprised me and profoundly impacted my life.

He wrote me back.

Personally.  Specifically encouraging me.  And he signed his email

Yours in the Mystery,  Paul

What stood out to me in his closing was the concept of Mystery regarding knowing and following Christ.  As a mom at home with a toddler and a school age son, I had the daily gift of naptime for my quiet time each afternoon.  God used the afternoons in the fall of 1997 to open my ears to hear His voice personally through His Word in ways I had not experienced before.  I studied and grew in my faith and knowledge of God more that year than any other to that point.

During those afternoons as the shadows lengthened, the air crisp with changing season,  I asked the Lord if I might have a closing signature for my email; one that would point to Him without screaming I AM A CHRISTIAN and potentially closing off conversations with some who needed wooing and subtlety.  So I prayed and let it sit.  Not long after asking I was reading in Acts about ‘the Way’ and it occurred to me what my email signature could be.

Yours along the Way,  Lisa

So that was it.  My email signature with a meaning greater than ‘sincerely’.  And the first part of my story of the origin of my business name, Learning Along the Way. This story is like a journey from creek to river.  I will pick up next Sunday but ten years into the future from this point in the story.

Life is a journey.  Each one is somewhere along the way.  Join me here and we can journey together, learning along the Way.

Follow Me…

Categories