La Danza

 As my sister and I were driving home this evening from a lovely comedy show by Tim Hawkins, we put in my favorite Coldplay Album, Rush of Blood to the Head. Some of the lyrics from the song "Politik" really stood out to me:

Give me strength, reserve control
Give me heart and give me soul
Wounds that heal....

Open up your eyes...

Just open up your eyes

And give me love over, love over, love over this...

 Heart, soul.. what do I know of these? I seem to live my everyday life simply to get by. Wake up, drink coffee to stay up, get through the day so I can fall into bed. Not that coffee or comfy beds are evil at'all... but I strongly feel that God is calling me, is calling US to something so much more, in terms of our attitude toward each day of life! Here's my own quirky example/analogy-thing. Oftentimes, I get the funny urge to.. well.. dance! Even at work! When there isn't a stampede of customers, I inwardly wish I could leap and twirl through the bakery. Certain music intensifies this desire. I am also inspired by nature (freshly fallen snow, for example)... I suppose beholding and experiencing beauty creates a spark in me that longs to be part of this expression..

But let me backtrack a bit more. On the way back from the Urbana Global Mission's conference (https://urbana.org/), my friends and I [Joy, Caila, amd Emily to be exact] decided to listened to a interview podcast on the biblical perspective of work and such :). I remember how the speaker shared her journey of self-reflection- she dared to ask the question: why has God given me a certain passion or talent in a specific area?  Trying to apply this question to my own life, I immediately thought of dance. It is something that I started formally learning in college (Oh, Ballet 1 with Janet!..), but also something that I have always loved. I used to tell people that dance has always been a part of my soul, dying to come out.... only my soles needed a little practice :P (Sorry for the corniness, we'll get back into serious-mode now!).

Needless to say, I could not figure out the answer to this question- why am I so drawn to dance? At first, I wasn't even sure it was right for me to continue with classes. Am I dancing just so other will look at me?" I thought. "Am I striving with this in order to be praised? Should I be spending this time doing something else?" But I was hooked- once you discover the joy of dance, you can't turn back!  Still, I needed to make sure that this wasn't becoming an idol in my life. And praise God, he helped me to work out these issues in my heart, and has actually used dance in many ways to draw me closer to Himself. ("Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness.." ! Psalm 96:9)

As I said before, tonight something struck me... and it wasn't lightning! Haha I am such a nerd. But as I pondered those words from Politik I realized that I am starving myself.. in both a metaphorical and literal sense, too many times I refuse to dance. I deeply desire to express my heart and soul through movement.. but I am too busy for that. Some days I'd rather just.. not think or feel much of anything, let alone awaken my heart to sing God's praises. I long to be revived in God's presence, filled with His truth and grace so that it overflows from my heart to my soles.. yet I live like I am speed-dating the Lover of my soul. What would my life look like if, instead, I woke up each morning knowing that I am embarking on an adventure, one in which I dance with and for my Prince, allowing Him to change my heart? [deep breath, that was a Paulean sentence right there!] As I delight in my Savior I can learn and meditate and practice each new step of the dance... which is all a part of God's plan to change the world! Well, readers, I don't know how easily I have explained myself, but I hope you understand this: I think tonight I realized that I am drawn to dance because God knew that I would deeply connect with it as a representation of how I am to live every moment of my entire life.. with Him.

How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!"

Isaiah 52:7