An Amazing Guide for the Tour of Life

I often wish I had the insight and knowledge of an expert guide to help me map out and navigate the journey of my life. 

Wouldn't that be amazing?

Whenever I plan a trip, I search out tours that can give me a taste of the local culture and a guide who can show me a city's hidden gems that tourists might not discover on their own.

In Paris, I took a walking food tour of the city from a long-time Parisian who opened locked gates to secret courtyards of her friends and introduced us to her favorite shopkeepers. She advised us not to believe the tour books but to take her recommendations for the best chocolate and pastries in Paris.

She was sophisticated and confident and I felt very French just accompanying her through the city streets {although I made sure to walk a few steps behind her}.

I spent three hours touring the Louvre with an elegant guide in her 70s whose knowledge of art, history and religion was spectacular. I could have listened to her talk for days, she was so interesting and well-informed.

I couldn't help comparing that visit with my day at the Musee d’Orsay, Paris’s treasure trove of Impressionist paintings, where I opted to just read the placards as I strolled around on my own. 

I missed the insight and stories that guides reveal, and when I got home I realized my experiences with a tour guide were often my favorite memories of my trip.

So I’m welcoming the You’re Already Amazing Life Growth Guide by author and (in)courage founder Holley Gerth as much-needed inspiration for my life's journey. It's a companion to Holley’s previously published book, You’re Already Amazing, and offers six sessions:

1. Who God Created Us to Be
2. What's True No Matter How We Feel
3. Our Amazing Journey with Jesus
4. God's Plan for Our Relationships
5. God's Purpose for Our Lives
6. How We Can Thrive for a Lifetime

Holley takes us through exercises that identify our strengths and skills as she shares truths that will help us recognize God’s purpose for our lives. 

Since we can sometimes become mired in details that are overwhelming or challenging, she invites us to map out where we are on our journey by creating a timeline of our lives. This offers a big picture view so we can better understand how far God has brought us.

For my timeline, I was tempted to include every monumental moment {my first pair of high heels certainly ranks right up there or surely decorating my first apartment?} but I limited myself to a handful of life-changing events that truly changed or impacted my journey.

I realized that five years ago I couldn't have seen myself writing a blog, exploring Paris or making art in Italy on a retreat with 24 ladies I'd never met before. 

I saw my natural tendency as a settler in Holley's descriptions of how we react to change in our lives, yet I somehow {for a short time} became an explorer and traveler, when God said it was time for a new adventure.

Holley inspires us to identify all that's already amazing about who we are and to set our sights on looking at our lives through God's perspective of us, which is wonderfully unique, creative and loving.

Realizing who we are is the first step to living out God's beautiful purposes for all of us.

“All we are, everything God created us to be, becomes a gift when placed in his hands. There’s nothing he can’t mold, shape, redeem or form into something beautiful. We don’t have to be afraid or hold back — we can just hold out our hearts to the one who promises to complete the good work work he’s already started in us." - Holley Gerth

In Italy last summer, our local guide Rita toured us through the village of Bellagio. She was passionate about sharing her love of the area with us.

She took us to her father-in-law's house and invited us to view the lake from his yard. After leading us on a several mile walk, she arranged for us to have a lunch spread in the alcove of the gardens {where the public isn't normally invited} so we could recline on the lawn with our Italian sandwiches and fruit.

On our last night in Bellagio, she scheduled a private concert of a local choir to serenade us as we looked out over the lake for the last time before heading for home.

These talented tour guides I met on my trips shared their gifts to create treasured memories for me that will last a lifetime.

In Paris, after my tour of the Louvre ended, I went up to the woman who led the group and told her the evening was unforgettable and I was so grateful she shared her knowledge with us. 

In true French fashion, she shrugged, smiled politely and said she was glad I enjoyed it. 

I wonder if those women realize how truly amazing they are.

I'm part of Revell publisher's blogger review tour for You're Already Amazing Life Growth Guide. I received a complimentary copy of the book, but the opinions are completely my own.

I'm having coffee with my friends Holley Gerth at Coffee for your Heart and Bonnie Gray at the Faith Barista. Join me there for more posts from my blogger friends!