I SAW THE GOSPEL IN OUR AWKWARD, JOYFUL DANCES…

A couple of weeks ago, we had a dance class at our church. It was a one time thing. It was offered by the wife of one of our newest staff members. Her name is Denine Blevins. She is an amazingly creative woman. I have loved her since she arrived this past January.

This was a class on hip-hop dancing. You wouldn’t think there would be much interest in our lily white suburban church would you? But she has done some of it at a retreat and everyone loved it. The title of the class was: Perfecting Freestyle: Gospel Lessons for an Unpredictable Life. So, as you can tell, there was more to the class than simply dancing.

We didn’t do a great job of inviting friends. I invited. But there were lots of scheduling clashes. Denine invited lots of friends and they came! It was a wonderful evening of connection with each other and reminding us of the gospel in ways that touched our hearts. A new lady that I was in a small group (2 of us) with was touched to tears as I shared something from my life. It touched a tender place in her heart that was very fresh. It was very sweet and we connected.

Let me tell you about Hannah…

She is a very dear, lovely newly-wed. She is new to our church over the past couple of years. She is beautiful, but on the quiet side. She smiles all the time. She happens to have cerebral palsy so has difficulty walking and her talking is slightly affected as well. I have never met a kinder woman. She is the daughter-in-law of a family in our church.

Denine invited her to the dance class. Her plan was to simply watch. But part way through, she was part of one of the groups and they had to perform. She decided to take part as an outgrowth of the class. When each group performed, it was the final part of the teaching on the gospel and how in Christ, we have His smile on us. There was a big smiley face held up, as each group performed for the rest while someone held up the smiley face. (You had to be there!)

The goal was to perform in the way we could, realizing we wouldn’t do it perfectly or like the person next to us. (fortunately for me!) I have almost no coordination when it comes to things like dancing and I can’t seem to remember the order of the routines. It is an abysmal combo! There were plenty of us who had good reasons not to be graceful at dancing. Maybe we gave Hannah the courage that she would do well!

The final part of the teaching was on the gospel and how in Christ, we have His smile on us. There was a big smiley face held up as each group performed for the rest while someone held up the smiley face. (You had to be there!) Share on X

I can’t tell you how touching it was for me to watch Hannah as she danced with her group of 4. She isn’t used to dancing at all, much less before an audience! But she was there dancing as well as she could and everyone was cheering her on as well as the group she was dancing with.

Was that a picture of the gospel? I can’t think of a better one! We so often get tied up with how we look. How we are doing in our “performance” of the gospel. But GOD just wants us to get out there and dance. He will use the dance for His glory.

As I watched Hannah dance on Friday night…and as I think about it now, I am touched. What a way to trust GOD and the people around her. And that is what we do when we move out in our everyday Christian life, isn’t it? Can anything be more vulnerable?

Will people let us down? Yes, sometimes they will. But often they won’t. Often they encourage. Often they lift us up and move us forward. But GOD never lets us down…ever!

We so often get tied up with how we look. How we are doing in our performance of the gospel. But GOD just wants us to get out there and dance. He will use the dance for His glory. Share on X

His smile of joy and grace is always on us if we are His daughters.

Thank you Hannah! You showed me the gospel on Friday. It was beautiful to watch you dance and show me a little more of Jesus! It reminded me how so often the gospel people see in me is a small part of the full picture of the gospel, but if I dance it joyfully and with abandon rather than cautiously, comparing myself to the other dancers, it is not nearly so beautiful and it shows much less of Jesus!

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses,
let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely,
and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus, 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.

Hebrews 12:1-2

I thought of this passage as I wrote this post. It reminded me of the people described in Hebrews 11…the well known heroes of faith as well as those who weren’t well known but died, some without seeing the promise come to fruition. That cloud of witnesses is cheering for us as we run the race or to use the metaphor of the post, as we dance the dance we have been given to dance for/with Jesus!
They are all cheering us on! It chokes me up to think of it. What a group! They want me to do well. They want me to endure because they know how worth it, it is as they enjoy the fruits of heaven with Jesus!

 

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