TMTD (Teach Me to Dance)

[In case you haven’t checked out the ‘so much more’ to be found in the menu of my blog site: Perils & Pearls - https://www.perilsandpearls.com , I have a page just for sharing my passion for music. I invite you to take a peek, sample a tune and then get into your Spotify app and enjoy the full versions. And keep coming back to this page because I change the music whenever I’m (or my feet) are moved!]

Although I’m aware it isn’t true for everyone, music has always been an easy channel for me to connect with God. I can find others’ words put to music that speak my mind and heart in that moment, and through that medium, bring everything to Him, to His throne room – whatever my disposition or need.

I feel heard and unburdened through my singing prayers, whether I am crying out for help/to be rescued, or bubbling over with gratitude for all He is and brings into my life, or lifting up someone else in my sphere – pleading their case or worshipping as them (which is quite different from worshipping for or with them…but that’s another blog post...). And there are many times God speaks back to me through the music as well. He uses everything – whatever means needed to get His messages to us, doesn’t He? He never tires in His pursuit of our hearts!

I just posted a song about which I’d like to share more with you. The song is Teach Me to Dance by Jervis Campbell. He is a current singer-songwriter in the Christian genre. It is not a new song- it came out in 2018- but its message has repeatedly spoken for me, especially during times of confusion or turmoil in my journey. (Spotify identified that song as my #1 most-played track of that year!)

It’s about choosing to stay the course – and trust God - even when it seems dark or unknown, or when you are just worn out by the battles you’re fighting. And it speaks about a rhythm, a dance, where you are allowing God to lead, to set the pace, and as you follow His lead you experience His peace.

“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” [Matt.11:28-30]

May I share one more connection for me with this particular song? I am a skate-skier (Wow, did I actually call myself that?), who didn’t take up the sport until I was fifty-five (– yeah, that’s right, 55)! And although I have been athletic my whole life, participating in multiple sports per season, skate-skiing was (and is) the hardest thing I ever took on!

I’m sure there are a lot of future blog posts held inside my nine years of trying to tip the scales towards having more fun than pain; but in this moment, I just want to share one nugget.

Each ski season I try to narrow the dozens of things I do incorrectly in my skating and poling motions down to a few key phrases to focus on. My husband taught me to call this type of shorthand ‘swing keys’ (as used in the sport of golf).

Would you be surprised to hear that every year, after I have formed my swing keys and started to execute them, the Lord starts talking to me about the deeper meaning – the message He has for me, held inside those three-to-five-word phrases?! Ha- I love His clever ways of tucking in a teaching!

Well, this ski season, I can happily say my swing key brought me more joy than instruction:

“Don’t be afraid to dance”! Ahh…. I finally feel stable enough with my balance and weight shift between my right and left ski/foot that I can actually feel a kind of dancing wanting to happen as I skate on the snow tracks. But, at first, I fought this feeling; it felt de-stabilizing, risky even. I didn’t want to fall!

Now you may have already put this altogether, but let me bring this full circle: The opening of this ski season matched the launch of my Perils & Pearls passion project! Can you see it with me?

As I took steps towards bringing life to the vision in my head and heart, I heard fear saying: “Oh, don’t start dancing around with these ideas about broadcast coaching! Nobody is going to get it… What is Perils & Pearls anyway?! It’s too risky; you will surely fall!”

And then a louder voice in me said; “Don’t be afraid to dance, My Beloved! Just follow My lead.”

Teach Me to Dance

There's a storm deep inside me raging with thunder And I know I can't hide it for the tempest it comes I can feel it all, the weight of my burdens I know that I can't do this alone

There's a road set before me, oh, I can see it Don't know where it's going but Lord, I'm afraid And I have heard the sound, oh, the sound of revival I just want to walk here in Your ways

I want it straight in the heart, feed me Your fire And I know it's so hard but out of darkness I'll choose 'Cause You are my everything, I want to meet my Maker Oh, teach me to dance so I can dance with You Teach me to dance so I can dance with You

And these chains that bound me, break them in glory And don't let me hide it for Your kingdom it comes Oh, the water runs deep, a living testimony I know You remain even when I fade 'Cause I know You remain even when I fade

I want it straight in the heart, feed me Your fire And I know it's so hard but out of darkness I'll choose 'Cause You are my everything, I want to meet my Maker Oh, teach me to dance so I can dance with You Teach me to dance so I can dance with You

My prayer over you:

Oh Lord, You see the worn-out in us – our hearts, our souls, even our bodies, carrying the fatigue of the battle. And each person reading this has unique battles with which she or he are contending. And not only are You intimately acquainted with every one of their fights, but You. Are. There. In it. With each one. Help us to find where You are in the midst of our chaos, for we know that keeping our eyes on You is where our hope lies.

I pray Matt 11-28-30 over each person reading – that each would hear and respond to Your personal invitation to bring their tired, burned-out, worn-out self to you. That You would whisk them away from their battle fields to be refreshed and restored by You. That You would show them what real r & r is.

That they would accept Your offer to teach and model a restful rhythm in which to flow and thrive as they walk with You. Reaffirm to each heart that Your plan for their life will fit how You made them; and because of that fit, they will be able to live freely and lightly. Oh how You desire to dance with each of us!

Amen.

Might you consider?...

Can you name the things that can move or keep you out of the unforced rhythms of His grace? What moves you (back) into His rhythm?

*Feel free to write me with your thoughts and questions on that.

If you would like to follow me on this adventure, and receive notice whenever I post something new, please subscribe. (It’s simple – at the bottom of every page on the Perils & Pearls blog site.)

And if you know people who would benefit from the support, and/or enjoy the short writings, please share the site or a post with them. Heck, just share it on your social media…Let’s grow it together!

Blessed to play a part~

g

Swept into the Sea

A journey starts with one single story. Here’s one of my earliest…

[Prelude: I know I came into this world being wanted. I was the first girl, after two boys, in what would become a brood of sorts, with six boys and three girls on the final score card. My mother was only in her mid-twenties when I came along – still trying to figure out the whole mother/housewife/wife thing, but with three preschoolers with immediate needs at her heels. From all accounts, she felt ill-prepared for any of those roles. I would not come to fully understand that until I too was a young, overwhelmed mother and wife. You could rightly sum up our (Ron’s and my) teenage marriage and parenthood onset as: kids having kids.]

…I don’t remember this happening. I was about 2 years old. it was during my dad’s stint as a successful businessman in Southern California. But I’ve been told the story many times over the years, so I think my brain has internalized it as my memory.

My mom took me and my two older brothers to the beach with her girlfriend (I’ll call her Judy), who was also a neighbor. As everyone was enjoying the lapping waves and their feet in the sand, no one noticed the tide was rising. I was on the blanket napping. All of a sudden, me and the blanket were being carried into the ocean. There was a frantic realization by the women that the baby girl was going out to sea!

Judy was the one who gathered her wits and came running into the water to fetch me out before the current of the undertow could have its way. I was rescued from danger - even possible death that day. In those scary moments of watching me be overwhelmed by the waves, my mom felt paralyzed to save me because she was afraid of the water. She did not know how to swim. Nonetheless, my story didn’t end there. I was carried back to safety.

Although she became a strong woman of faith over the decades to come, my mother admitted in her last years of full cognition she had lived her whole life in fear.

Hmm…Does it seem like a contradiction to proclaim faith in a limitless God and yet have hidden, unnamed fears holding power over you for a lifetime?

Well, now, having walked this world for six decades, being married for forty-six years, and having raised two children as a very young Christian mother, I can attest to how it is both possible and likely all of us will experience both of those states of mind and heart – repeatedly, over the course of our jagged-edged journeys. My thought: Feeling ill-equipped is part of the job description of a new mother, regardless of her age!

But what about this idea of unnamed fear having power over someone who has sure faith? For me, it has been about learning to acknowledge the trauma as well as the trust. You might have heard it said:

You cannot heal what you don’t feel. You must name it to tame it.

These rhymes for remembering are pointing to the reality of our human design: God gave us emotions and reasoning, the capacity for holding memories and culpability. He didn’t intend for us to deny or hide parts of our human experience. And I don’t believe it’s a spiritual badge of honor to do so. He wants us to bring all of it – feeling the feelings, acknowledging the pain, naming the fears – to Him. That He might walk back with us to the sources of those feelings and pain, and reassure us that He was there during every scary moment. Our trust is demonstrated in taking His offered hand to journey back.

It took me over 5 decades to put together and digest what that early account foretold about my forming and my future. Only God could know that so many years later, in my layered journey of healing, He would bring me to this scripture and accompany me back to perilous episodes such as this, reassuring me that it was Him Who Parts Seas, who carried me, instead of the waves.

The Lord is my protector; he is my strong fortress. My God is my protection and with him I am safe. He protects me like a shield; he defends me and keeps me safe.

He is my savior; he protects me and saves me from violence. I call to the Lord, and he saves me from my enemies. Praise the Lord!

The waves of death were all around me; the waves of destruction rolled over

me.

The danger of death was around me, and the grave set its trap for me. In my trouble I called to the Lord; I called to my God for help.

In his temple he heard my voice; he listened to my cry for help. (2 Samuel 22:2-7)

Sometimes when our rescue doesn’t happen how we expect - or by whom we expect - we default to not believing the promises God gives in scriptures such as this passage in 2 Samuel - He is your protector, your fortress, your shield, your defender. And in Deuteronomy 31:8, and repeated in Hebrews 13:5, He promises He will never leave you nor forsake you.

My heart for you as you reenter the day you stepped away from for a minute to read this, is to know that your story – of traumas, trials, and trust - is important to Him. And that you might be bolstered by what I too am convinced of:

I'm convinced: You, [Lord] can do anything and everything. Nothing and no one can upset Your plans. (Job 42:2)

He has a plan for you. It was in place before you were conceived. Every day of your life has already been recorded- known to Him. (Psalm 139) Even the pain & heartache was foreknown. But He is right there with you- always has been.

And He has jewels such as pearls for you and me to gather all along our priceless, and sometimes perilous, paths.

Could you consider?...

Even though you will not always know the how, when or by whom, could you see yourself trusting Him to rescue you; to rescue your heart, and your story? Why or why not?

*Feel free to write me with your thoughts and questions on that.

If you would like to follow me on this adventure, and receive notice whenever I post something new, please subscribe. (It’s simple – at the bottom of every page on the Perils & Pearls blog site.)

And if you know people who would benefit from the support, and/or enjoy the short writings, please share the site or a post with them. Heck, just share it on your social media…Let’s grow it together!

Blessed to play a part ~

g

The First Broadcast Coach You’ll Meet

Hi, I’m so glad you dropped by! I’m pretty excited over here…I have joyful expectancy as I step out into what I believe is my most current expression of offering what I have to give. I am a seasoned Life Coach who believes in the importance of our stories, which when taken together create a moving story - or a journey. And each of us travels our own one-of-a-kind journey that is meant to be witnessed and shared, because we were created for community, for relationships (and laughter, like between the 2 women in the image!)

In introducing myself to you, may I share my heart re: why I chose this platform, what you can expect, and why spend valuable minutes visiting to read what I write?

Let’s start here: My passion is to help others find and live out of theirs. Encouraging others in their journeys is the thing I can’t not do! I can get my basic current credentials covered in a few bullet points:

· Professional Life Coach (since 2005)

· LifePlan Facilitator

· Keynote & Retreat Speaker

· Certified Enneagram Practitioner

· Qualified Coach for MBTI

· Blogger @ Perils & Pearls

· Hidden Treasure Coaching & Consulting, Cofounder www.hiddentreasurecc.com

Essentially, I am launching this blog to share my journey and accompany you on yours. I came up with the term 'broadcast coaching' to describe what this format can perhaps offer: life coaching an audience, where more lives can be touched and encouraged. (My secret desire has been to have a call-in show to demonstrate life coaching ‘from the hip’- or laser coaching - as callers present a roadblock they are dealing with re: forward movement in their journeys. Wow, did I write that out loud?!)

In landing on this platform to 'broadcast coach,' I am also coaching myself. Ya see, when I work with women who have reached the ‘master stage’ of life, I coach them to consider this question: What do I want my legacy to be? In other words, what can I distill from my journey to this point and pass on to enrich or encourage others’ journeys? I’m endeavoring to practice what I preach.

In terms of what you can expect here, I intend to be authentic about my journey- the perils and the pearls - and earnest in my desire to support yours. But first and foremost, I dedicate this space to whatever God has in mind for both the writer and the readers, knowing full well that His goal is always wholeness, integration, shalom.

A pastor shared this many years ago from the pulpit and it was immediately emblazoned on my heart to fix my lifelong desire upon #3. I pray for that in this endeavor:

There are 3 ways to do life:

1. Your will, your way

2. God’s will, your way

3. God’s will, God’s way

As I put together the components of this blog site, I was so giddy to have the freedom for Full Geri Expression (FGE)! So you will find several portals in the top menu that represent the various channels through which my passion for life gets expressed. (If only I could cook for you too!)

Have some fun exploring Thru gigi’s eyes, Sing my way through, Join me outside & Come inside. And I hope to refresh those pages as the Spirit moves me and time allows. I will also write more on why each of those venues is so special to me.

The final but not least important thing you can expect @ Perils & Pearls is my heart to support you – whatever stage and circumstance of life you are in – to come alongside and reassure you that you are not alone.

In closing, right now – today - may you know deep in your gut, heart, and body that you are His Beloved and He is yours (Song of Solomon 6:3). And you are seen and known (Genesis16:13b and Psalm 139).

I leave you with this question to ponder:

What is the thing you can't not do?

*Feel free to write me with your thoughts and questions on that.

If you would like to follow me on this adventure, and receive notice whenever I post something new, please subscribe. (It’s simple – at the bottom of every page on the Perils & Pearls blog site.)

And if you know people who would benefit from the support, and/or enjoy the short writings, please share the site or a post with them. Heck, just share it on your social media…Let’s grow it together!

Blessed to play a part ~

g