Let Israel be glad in their Maker. Let Zion rejoice in her King. Let them praise His name with dancing; Let them sing praises to him with timbrel and lyre.
Psalms 149:2-3
WAIT!! Before you continue reading, stop and have a DANCE PARTY!!! Seriously, go for it. Bust a move 😉
I have been thinking about dancing lately and several impactful experiences resurfaced in my mind. I’m not sure how you feel about dancing, but I wanted to share my thoughts with you to hopefully stir us both towards a deeper love toward God!
I used to love dancing as a child. Like many young girls, I took dance classes and would dance around the house. Eventually, however, I stopped dancing because I was afraid of what other people would think. I did not want people to judge me, so I did not give them an opportunity to. I did not even realize this was a thought I held on to until one afternoon when I was babysitting my neighbor girls.
It was a sunny afternoon and the girls wanted to have a lemonade stand, so that’s exactly what we did! It was so lovely and our lemonade was so good, not to toot our own horn or anything 😉
It was their very superior “Secret Sisters” recipe. After a little while, we put on some music to spice up the stand. Soon after pumping up the jams, the girls wanted to dance. They cried out, “Let’s have a dance party!!”
Suddenly, fear of man filled my mind and I was paralyzed by fear. I promptly replied, “You should do that! You should dance! I don’t want to.”
What happened next changed me forever.
The smiles of these two beautiful young girls immediately faded and their spirits became heavy. They no longer wanted to dance.
My heart sank.
Unintentionally, my fear of the opinion of others overflowed from my life to the lives of these girls. My fear was teaching them to care what others thought more than to live in the moment and have fun. I took the joy out of their dancing because I would not be present and embrace the gift God has given me to move my body.
So what if someone saw? At least, I could have shown the girls how to love life and find joy in dancing with each other. They could have gained confidence in themselves and we could have shared a moment of laughter, but instead I was too concerned with people thinking I was uncool.
Luckily, God redeems and now every time I babysit them, we have at least one dance party together and trust me, we know how to bust a move. It’s their favorite thing to do and so joyful 🙂
Recently, God has been teaching me more and more about this topic. To be honest, I did not fully grasp the power of dancing until one night in Kona, HI. That might sound weird, but just keep reading.
It was the summer of 2021. I was at a discipleship training school through Circuit Riders at the YWAM base in Kona. My friend and I had just spent time in prayer declaring freedom and wholeness from areas the devil had previously held strongholds in my life. After this, I felt so joyful, I literally did not know what to do. Praise God for the gospel! My friend was like, “Girl, we have to dance!” Not knowing how else to respond to the grace and goodness of God I was experiencing, I was like, “Okay, let do it!”
“GIRL, WE HAVE TO DANCE!”
And so, we danced, at mid-night, in the middle of a field, under billions of stars, before the Lord, as an expression of our gratitude and joy in Him. This moment is now one of my most cherished moments in life.
We probably looked ridiculous. And in the moment, I had no idea what I was doing. But, I didn’t care, I just let the Spirit of the Lord carry me through that field and guide my feet as I danced with him. It was sacred and I could feel the chains of sin and fear falling off my life as I danced before the Lord that night.
As I have studied the word of God this year, I began to notice dancing pop up in the Bible.
- Miriam danced after God rescued the Israelittes from the Egyptian army. She not only danced, but led all the women in dancing with her. (Ex. 15:20-21)
- How might your expressions of gratitude influence others and welcome them in to an act of worship to God?
- King David danced after the ark of the covenant was brought to the City of David. (2 Sam 6:14-16). His wife made fun of him for dancing. Yet, he did not let the opinion of people keep him from his act of worship. He said, “I will become even more undignified than this” (2 Sam 6:22). His heart was for God to be glorified and honored. So Radiant!
- When was the last time you felt the overwhelming joy of God’s presence?
- After David Killed Goliath, the woman came out and danced (1 Sam 18:6-7).
- May we be people who celebrate in community when God brings the victory.
- In Jeremiah 31, God promises that he will turn mourning into dancing
- Have you lost your joy? Is your hope in God to renew your joy?
- Ecclesiastes 3:1-4 says there is a time for everything, for mourning and for dancing
- What reasons do you have to dance today?
- How can you mourn with those around you who are suffering?
People often dance in response to what God has done. Dancing is biblical and a way to honor the Lord.
Side note: The first thing that was said about the Church in Acts was that they were thought to be drunk because of the way they were experiencing the Holy Spirit! (Acts 2:13) They were likely moving their bodies and crying out. Does your faith life communicate the power of the Holy Spirit to the world or does your life look like stagnant waters?
Don’t be afraid of a life with God that does not fit nicely into the status quo of society, be afraid of a life that does.
This is so good. Time for one more story. Here we go 😉
Now, as I have said, I love dancing again. Dance parties fill my soul. It was a common occurrence to someone walk past my room and be drawn into a dance party this past year. Whenever I get stuck in a rut, I take time and dance. Dancing fills my heart with joy.
Anyway, back to the story… the Soiree, it’s like a prom for college students. It was at our local botanical gardens which was a super stunning venue with tropical plants and butterflies. Everyone was dressed to the nines, cameras were flashing, it was lovely. As the night went on, it was a PARTY to say the least. We were dancing the night away. After a few hours of breaking it down, we were all extremely sweaty, but the adrenaline was pumping and we were busting all the moves. Ha!
Then, suddenly, as if a gentle breeze blew through an open window, I heard the still small voice of the Lord comes in and speaks to me. It was so sweet, but also almost jealous. I’m not sure how many hearts the Lord spoke to, but several people told me they had the same moment during the dance.
The voice stirred in our hearts and challenged us. It said, “What if you had this amount of passion, energy, and fearlessness for me and my kingdom?”
What if you had this amount of passion, energy, and fearlessness for me and my kingdom?
I was convicted, but I was also having a blast, so I kept on shimmying. However, I have kept this challenge close to my heart. Still to this day, I am asking God to transform the way I live to become a lifestyle of faith.
What would it look like in your life to go all in for Jesus this week? To dance before him with abandon? Do you need to remove anything to make space for God to once again be first in your life? Is there anything holding you back from dancing before him and with him in this life? Why? What is it?
Are you living sold out for Jesus?
Dancing with Jesus, with your eyes locked on his, hand in hand with the Father, heart to heart with the Spirit of God, what a radiant life that would be. What a fearsome sight to behold.
P.S. Jesus does not care if you aren’t coordinated, or trip over your feet, or have no rhythm. He simply invites us to be with him.
Dance with him this week. Let go of the fear of man and follow his lead.
Check out this song as you learn to dance hand in hand with Jesus:
Grace Phelps 