Starting With Prayer

The first week back to the studio at Cavod Performing Arts was a success! It was so lovely to see all of the students smiling faces again and was special to watch them warmly embrace one another after a long summer apart. It felt so good for me to be back in my element and I am enjoying the rhythm of the good ole' routine. I am so thankful God led me to my ballet instructing position with Cavod Performing Arts and am so excited to see what the Lord has in store for all of us here at Cavod this coming year.

A few of my lovely students from last season.

Cavod is a special place. One of my favorite things about teaching at Cavod is how much freedom we are given, not only with encouraging and guiding our students to be better dancers but also in facilitating their development of faith and good character.

Faith, that is, in Jesus Christ

"The way, and the truth, and the life." - John 14:6

"The one in whom the whole fullness of deity dwells" - Colossians 2:9

"The one who, though he had none, God made to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." - 2 Corinthians 5:21

"Our blessed hope, the glory of our great God, our Savior." - Titus 2:13

"The King of kings and Lord of lords” - Revelations 17:14

"The founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God, endured opposition from sinners so that we will not grow weary and lose heart" -Hebrews 12:2

We help encourage the students in their faith in subtle ways; In our actions, by loving them unconditionally like Christ, and by cultivating growth in them through the vehicles of constructive (but not too abrasive) criticism AND encouragement, which I know from experience as a former ballet student can seem a much less common approach educating in the world of the performing arts these days. We are also encouraged and given the freedom to say a prayer at the beginning of each class which is one of my favorite ways to prepare both the hearts and minds of the students and myself as we enter into our ballet classes which can be so demanding of our hearts, minds, and bodies! I predominately work with the junior age and young teens. I remember what it was like to train at their age, with such vigor, and at such a formative period in their lives. My favorite prayer to pray over them actually comes from the pen of King David, found in Psalms 19:14

"May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart 

be pleasing to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer."

...Because Lord knows the self-deprecating thought life performers can find themselves wrestling against at times.

I am eternally grateful for my own, very experienced, and wise former dance teacher who set the example for me and would pray this over myself when I was a student. I can now say I've "been there, done that" in the sense that: I once, in my youth, trained vigorously, worked hard to attain my goals, climb the ranks, made it professional, and now too, am a well-seasoned ballet teacher that has found the necessity of prayer, and faith, and "above all, guarding your heart, for it is the wellspring of life." (Proverbs 4:23.)

In hindsight, I am amazed looking back on the journey the Lord has taken me on, and am so honored to be his vessel in this way as a dance teacher in this season. I only pray this enthusiasm and gratitude sticks with me in the thick of the school year. 😝

In closing, to any of my readers out there that equally have a heart for prayer and my mission, would you please keep the following prayer requests in mind on behalf of me and my students and their families:

• That God would be the source, our all and everything, for all us teachers, leaders, and staff at Cavod. That he would guide, and provide us with wisdom and all the smarts when dealing with the precious souls he has entrusted us with educating. That we would be sufficiently poured into as we pour out; that Cavod would stand out and be known as a set apart organization unquestionably for the glory of God.

• That God would protect our students physically (no injuries in Jesus' name), emotionally, and spiritually, as well as their families.

• Would you pray for Cavod's Citylight Dance Theater outreach team; That we would have fruitful ministry this year?

• For logistical needs; that we would meet our funding goals no problem, for good communication within the school amongst one another and amongst the families we work with, and for performance bookings and opportunities for us and our students to give back to the Lancaster Country Community. 

Thanks for stopping by!

Have a great day and a blessed week 

in the Lord!

💗

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Hershey Park Happy

The end of summer is steadily approaching. I’m not sure if I’m ready to move on from it... but “ready or not, here it comes.” I feel like I am still readjusting from my trip to Colorado two weeks ago visiting my friend Micky, where I had virtually no responsibility (I was on vacation after all!), was fed delicious home cooked meals each night (so when one gets married, do you automatically magically gain the skill of good cooking? I may be selling myself short…but i sure do hope that gift descends upon me when the time comes!) and got to spend practically 24/7 with Micky and her dear family. 

I have returned back to my empty little apartment here in Lancaster, PA and it just feels so quiet. I have had to work hard to ward off feelings of loneliness. I think the routine that is to come with the start of the school year will be good for me. I have been counting down the days. 

Wave pool at the Hershey Park Theme Park

This past weekend, my family and I visited Hershey Park’s “Board Walk and Shore”, their waterpark zone. It was SO refreshing. I couldn’t have asked or imagined a better way to end my summer and have been so thankful- one of the perks of me moving back to Pennsylvania has been being able to spend more quality time with my folks! This past weekend was definitely a special time with them, even if the park was incredibly busy. We were able to get into the wave pool earlier on in the day before the line got too long, and later we got to enjoy and absolutely LOVED the lazy river. It was such a beautiful sunny day and the temperature perfect! 

Until this year, it has never before been so difficult to answer the frequently asked question: “How was your summer?” I feel like my summer has been a WHOLE MYRIAD of things; things that I never feel like going into when asked, (can anyone relate?), nor do I feel like going into it here, at the moment…but I do hope you all had a sensational summer! 

As we move forward into another fall and school year for some, if you so choose, join me in memorizing this scripture that has been very dear to my heart as of late! 

The promises of Jesus are so sweet! 😊 

That's all for now friends, Thank you for stopping by! Comment below and say Hi!

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Weekend Whatever's - Colorado Springs Style!

Hey Friends! I hope you all are enjoying your last couple weeks of summer! I just wanted to drop a few pictures and links here to fill you all in on what I have been up to this past week! I spent my whole last week in Colorado Springs, Colorado visiting and catching up with a dear old friend of mine (a Fellow Ballet Magnificat Alumni)! I have been to Colorado before, in my past days touring with Ballet Magnificat, but it sure was wonderful to visit the state for leisure, without a preplanned agenda or any obligations, not to mention how wonderful it was reuniting with my friend again after so many years! 
I spent most of my time catching up, relaxing with, and learning from my friend about what she has been up to, and what her new life of marriage and parenting has been like. It was such an enriching trip! 

Garden of The Gods, Colorado Springs CO

We had beautiful weather every day and it wasn't hard to fall in love with the beautiful big blue sky and magnificent mountain ranges in the backdrop wherever we went! Like a good tourist I took many pictures! Continue reading below to see a few of them, and read the handful of "Weekend-Whatevers", random facts and discoveries I made during my time in Colorado Springs, Colorado!

The mountainous skyline and Pikes Peak in the background

Striking a pose in front of the red rocks at Garden of The Gods

The "Kissing Camels"

"Balance Rock"

Nature sighting at Garden of the Gods

Monument Lake

Quality Friendship

  1. Visiting The Gardens of the Gods in Colorado Springs, was quite the experience, such a different landscape than what I'm used to here on the east coast!
2. I'll continue my Weekend Whatevers today bragging on my friend who provided me with amazing meals all week! Even her simple over-easy eggs we'd have at least once every day were delicious! I was told the "secret" ingredient was McCormick Culinary Mesquite Barbecue Seasoning!
3. Along with the BBQ seasoning, my friend also convinced me to add iron supplements to my grocery list after explaining to her my experience lately with lack of energy, informing me of their power in increasing red blood cells, producing muscle cells, and helping with overall body function and regulation.
4. Also THIS, Loreal Ever Pure Bond Strengthening shampoo and conditioner for my curly hair. My friend is very convincing. 
5. During my week in Colorado, I picked up this book from my friends' bookshelf, "Saving Your Marriage Before It Starts" and was able to start and finish it all in that one week. UM, THIS BOOK WAS LIFE CHANGING, bringing clarity to my fogged-up brain as of late, and providing me with a godly perspective on how healthy marital relationships are established, ones that are cut out for the long run. This book was such a helpful, but also EASY read, and I HIGHLY recommend it to any and everybody looking for love no matter what gender or stage of life they are in! Get it! Read it! Do it! One of the things I most appreciated about this book most was how it affirmed me in the good ways I subconsciously went about doing things in my previous relationship, which was so encouraging, but then also, I found myself wishing I had read this book before having entered into that previous dating relationship, as I felt I would have been better able to articulate myself and feelings in conversation about certain things if that would have been the case.
6. With love on the brain I have been getting an itch to re-read this beautiful and epic love story again. "A Severe Mercy" is one of my most favorite books I have ever read.
7. On our way to Colorado Springs from the Denver airport, we stopped at IKEA. It was a first-time experience for me. And it was AMAZING. From the Swedish meatballs to all the showrooms; I thought for a hot second that I was in heaven.

8. Though this music band has no longer been touring as of 2021, my friend introduced me to the band Rivers and Robots which I have absolutely fallen in love with, especially the song "Shepherd Of My Soul".
9. And just one other song I have recently discovered that has been ministering to my soul lately.
10. Lastly, along the theme of relationships and wisdom, check out this podcast I was introduced to during my trip, Boundless. It's based out of Colorado Springs, CO! I have really been enjoying it.

______________________________________________ That's a wrap friends! Thanks for stopping by!

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