I've been finding it difficult to write a post about The Pearl Event on Saturday. I want to capture it with my words, but I can't rightly do so. I think the best approach is to write about part of my take-away experience. I will try to give it some of the justice it deserves. There was much to be gained from what was shared, and everyone who attended walked away with their own set of pearls (literally and figuratively).
Friday night was the night to informally meet and talk with the speakers, three of which are my favorite bloggers. Sibi, is just warmth, grace, sparkles, sweetness, and beauty wrapped up into one. She's a true pearl, whose testimony will leave you stunned and full of hope. Paige is one lady I have loved from the moment I read her blog. She's so gorgeous, hip, down-to-earth, creative, and full of life. Paige made me feel loved! I wish we lived closer, because I feel a special connection to her. She and Sibi hug me the way I love to be hugged-- completely enveloped and long-lasting. And Edie-- superwoman-- energetic, intellectual yet not intimidating, stylish, awesome decorator, warm, and funny. Who could not love this woman? I want to be in her circle of close friends!
Saturday was the actual Event. Five wonderful speakers, each with a special story to tell. Each brought tears to my eyes. When I tried to reflect on the experience to my husband, I realized some major lessons that I felt the Holy Spirit was bringing to me through these women. Most of these were tied very clearly to the points that Paige made in her message. Find my voice and tell my story now, even though I may feel insignificant and my story may still not be fully written. Share even when I am still walking through the fire. God is writing my story. He has the perfect plan; He is the perfect author. Trust in Him. Jane Matthews shared a quote from Bill Johnson that applies here (I hope I got this down right): "Sometimes the willingness to do what I am not qualified to do, qualifies me."
Edie shared that we should not be afraid to "live on the edge" through suffering, trials, and risking our vulnerability to others. "Suffering causes us to live on the edge in real life." God wants us living on the edge. I felt she was saying that our vulnerability leads others to vulnerability and opens us all to the love and grace of God. (This day was possible because Sibi, Jane, Sarah, Paige, and Edie were willing to allow God to speak through their vulnerabilities.) Edie also talked about how being vulnerable through her blogging was a form of living life on the edge. That really spoke to me, because it is one of the goals that I have for blogging. I feel the need to answer this call in my face-to-face life too. (There's a blog post or 90 million being written in my mind to follow.) As if in confirmation, the devotional I started this year, Jesus Calling: Seeking Peace in His Presence, offered me this the following morning: "If you live your life too safely, you will never know the thrill of seeing Me work through you. When I gave you My Spirit, I empowered you to live beyond your natural ability and strength."
One universal theme throughout the Event was the need to lay all at His feet. If there is anything that we feel we can't live without, that is our idol. Each of these women have seen the thing they thought they couldn't survive without taken from them in one form or another: death, disease, fire, rejection, abandonment. Each, not only survived, but with the grace of God, have emerged as His beautiful Pearls! I must confess this is a tender subject. I don't like to think too much about what my idols may be, and I think I am not alone. But as I sat listening to Edie speak about watching her beloved home being swallowed by fire, I felt a sense of peace about the laying down of some of my own idols. For about four years, I suffered terrible anxiety about the potential loss of two idols. In recent months, I have lain these things at the feet of Jesus (sometimes daily). At
that moment on Saturday, I shed tears of relief and release. Although these things have not been taken from me, I know that God is in control and I will more than survive if they are taken away tomorrow.
The lightning and thunder are rolling in now, and I fear I might lose all this if I don't make haste and post this. And I should probably unplug this computer to keep it from a potential zapping. Before I go, I want to encourage you today, no matter what storm you might be in the midst of, to reach out--whether it's to help, or to ask for help. Be vulnerable to God and to others.
Big, warm hugs!
Mary
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