What is palms up?

Palms up is a rhythm to hold your life. It can be used in any situation, at any time. What invitation might it offer today?

Show Up. We show up to our lives, mess and all. To what we'd rather ignore some days. We choose to stop hiding.
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Pay Attention. We pay attention to what's going on around us. What's being said & not being said. We become expert noticers.
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Cooperate with God. Love Is already at work all around us. We're not bringing God to people. We notice Love is already at work and we choose to cooperate. 

Release the Outcome. We let go of needing to know or force outcomes. We trust that Love Is holding It, and that's enough. Love gets more room to work.

Palms up helps you

• ​​Make decisions
• See your life from a new perspective
• Put the pieces of yourself back together​
• Live a more aware and awake life
• Become more healthy in your emotional, mental, physical & spiritual health
• Explore spirituality from a fresh perspective
• Follow Jesus (If that's your thing)

A Palms Up Manifesto

This is for anyone who’s tired of cultures of fear, control, distrust, cynicism, isolation, unhealthy competition, status quo and fear of failure. Let’s keep shifting our cultures together toward something more beautiful, more compelling and much more effective.

Read the Palms Up Manifesto

The Inspiration

Dr. Elaine Heath teaches a contemplative stance that grounds her and in turn has been formational for many others. This rhythm of showing up, paying attention, cooperating with God and releasing the outcome is life-giving when we find ourselves out of sorts. It offers us many invitations to be free. 

Bob Goff tells a great story in his book, "Love Does." As a lawyer, he tells his clients in depositions to place their hands palms up on their knees below the table. It's impossible to get defensive when your palms are open. Go ahead, try it! The position of our bodies reflects the position of our hearts. 

In the mid 2000s, Jenny put those two concepts together and palms up took on a life of its own. Since then, many of us have found wisdom, direction and peace in this rhythm of life. Maybe it will serve you too.

A little about Jenny

My name is Jenny Smith. I’m a pastor just north of Seattle, Washington. There’s one thing we do to start most of our gatherings and I’m still surprised how many people will say it’s the best part of our time together.

We breathe. One breath in…and one breath out. And somehow, in that one moment together, we let go of some things and we prepare for some new things. It’s pretty incredible.

I hope the same for you here. May you breathe deeply around here.

My name is Jenny and I’m so glad you’re here. A little about me. I grew up in Ohio, Alaska, Florida and now live in Marysville, Washington. I’m married to Aaron and we somewhat keep up with our two children, 8-year-old Isabella and 5-year-old Wesley. These three keep me grounded, dancing and joyful. Seriously, just yesterday I found myself dancing to the Trolls movie soundtrack in the kitchen while making spaghetti. They teach me more about love than just about anyone I know. Especially when I’m awful at it.

My other loves: breakfast food, swimming, paddle boarding, trying new recipes on Pinterest, photography and reading. I feel most myself when I’m by the ocean or a lake. You should probably know (or you’re about to figure out fairly quickly) that I’m an Enneagram One. I’ve tried to change numbers but you know, it’s who I am. I’m *slowly* learning to accept it.

I graduated in 2005 from Florida Southern College and in 2010 from United Theological Seminary. I was ordained a pastor in the United Methodist Church in 2012 and served three churches in Alaska before coming to Marysville, Washington in 2015. We're getting to know the good people of Edmonds, Washington with a new pastoral appointment starting in 2020.

I love to write and enjoyed the opportunity to contribute to “Filling the Void: Voices From the None Zone” and “Almost Christmas: A Wesleyan Advent Experience.” Most recently, check out "I Have Some Things To Tell You: A Pastor Says Goodbye During a Pandemic" on Amazon. And look for “Advent: A Calendar of Devotions” arriving August 4, 2020!

​Palms up,

Partner

Looking for a speaker for a retreat or gathering? Send me a note and let’s chat!
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“People should not come out of a spiritual retreat unchanged. They should have learned something new about themselves and their relationships with God and others. And/or they should have deepened their connections with the people there. They should laugh with each other and cry with each other. They should feel good about the experience at the time – and afterwards. They should feel that they aren’t done, at the end. The retreat should provide a safe space for them to be vulnerable to their pasts, and to the people around them. (For a personally comfortable level of vulnerability, of course.) The structure of the retreat should not allow naturally dominant personalities to dominate. Your leadership provided all that for us.“

“Call her now! She’s real. The content is relevant and powerful.“

“Having work under Jenny’s leadership directly, I celebrate that her writing genuinely reflects the authentic ways she leads her team. Her writing is not just mere hypothetical suggestion. It is her actual practice. Know that the woman who shares her heart with you in words is the very same woman who would embrace you in person. Her impact on my work and personal faith journey have in unarguably life-changing. Everyone needs a “Jenny” to stir their hearts into full, free aliveness. And now, because of her writing, that’s possible.”

“Jenny is a soul-full leader who communicates in beautiful, thoughtful and brilliant ways. I am inspired by her depth of insight, willingness to be vulnerable and commitment to palms up living. I always look forward to receiving her wisdom in my inbox as it helps me grow into the type of leader I want to be.”

“Personal experiences are the best touchstones for learning and sharing with others. Jenny’s ability to examine her own life and what needs direct attention – with palms up, is so very helpful to me.”

“Jenny has the amazing ability to write from a perspective that speaks at a high overview level of humanity, but is translatable to everyday life. She is real, honest, relatable and inspirational.“

​“I have read Jenny’s Manifesto For a Palms Up Leader so many times; it inspires me every time. And so do her words that describe with great warmth and honesty the challenges we face with the values of introspection and courage.”