I began to write this blog after the horrific massacre at Virginia Tech last week. As I watched the images pour in of these young people who's lives had been cut short by a very troubled peer, I couldn't help but think of the book of Ecclesiastes. The words "a time to mourn" continued to flood my mind and as they did I struggled to remember the whole verse. I went to God's Word and began to read Ecclesiastes 3:1-8. As I read the verses I noticed a distinct pattern. For every action there is an opposite reaction. There is a time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to uproot. A time to kill and a time to heal. You get the picture. As I read verse 4 I noticed something that caused me to pause and think. As a matter of fact....I thought so much and my brain was so full that I couldn't continue this blog.
When I reached verse 4 I read "A time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to........DANCE"? Dance? Happy I could understand. What would be the opposite of mourn? Well, in my mind it would be 'happy'. Why would God have wrote 'dance'?
As I said above, I began writing this blog last week. April 19th to be exact. I meditated on verse 4 for most of the day and night. Absolutely in awe of God. Then it struck me. God wrote 'dance' instead of 'happy' because to truly dance....you need to be filled with joy. Ah...He is very clever. On April 20th my mom, my aunt, and two of my very good friends left town to attend the Women of Faith conference in Des Moines, Iowa.
The theme of the Women of Faith conference was 'Amazing Freedom'. I knew it was going to be good....it always is. However, I knew that this time.......God had something to say to me and I was excited to spend some time focused completely on Him. I was anxious to find out what He wanted me to know. He had been drawing me very near over the last few weeks.
Friday, April 20th, 12,000 women filed into the Wells Fargo Arena. The first speaker was a lively little lady named Patsy Clairmont. Let me tell you something, if you have never seen Patsy speak......you are missing out. She knows how to make you laugh and she knows how to make you cry! She has a contagious spirit that could only come from her Creator. I was totally engaged in her story when she began to talk about 'dancing'. My ears perked up. Did she really say 'dancing'? She began to quote Ecclesiastes 3:4 and I sat in silent amazement as she talked about dancing with your legs, your mind, and your heart. She spoke about the freedom that comes when you can dance with joy in spite of the circumstances around you. I praised God for elaborating on the answer He had already given me, in such a way that I couldn't miss His point! Patsy ended her time with us by quoting part of the song "I hope you dance". She inspired us to dance when given the choice and reminded us......we always have a choice.
The family and friends of those who were killed at Virginia Tech are mourning right now. I pray that they will be able to dance very soon and when they do.......... I pray that they will experience the freedom that goes along with it.
1 comment:
Great blog....
Your blog created some question within me, I did some research to answer your question "why would God use 'dance'"? The two words in the Greek/Hebrew are nearly synonomous. Each having opposite EMOTIONAL meanings. To dance is to spring about with joy where to mourn was a means of ritualistic dance that included the "tearing of hair and beating of the breasts" in grief. Anyhow....
It helped me. Thanks.
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