Dancing with God

There are two kinds of people on earth--those who dance and those who don't. I fall into the latter category.  When you have the physique of Mr. Potato Head, you really don't look right on a dance floor.

As a non-dancer, I frankly don't understand what dancing means to those who do.  Whenever I hear that songs "I Could Have Danced All Night,” I wonder how she could have done it, and why.  We Presbyterians are generally rhythmically deprived anyway. 

Nevertheless, I have tried it.  A couple of years ago, Joy and I got a book and instructional DVD on ballroom dancing. We moved the furniture in our living room, and gave it a try.  At first, I really did feel like a potato on legs.  But after a while, when we got over the initial embarrassment of it, it was fun.   We learned to trust one another, to follow each other's lead and to trust each other's inspiration.

 That, I think must be the appeal of dancing.  Dancing is an art of mutual inspiration and improvisation. Dancers learn to trust each other, so that what one does naturally leads to their partner following suit.  It is a communication of two people through the body and the heart, not simply the head.

There are then a lot of ways we dance without actually dancing.  A good conversation is a kind of dance. A conversation is not about anything in particular, but flows from one subject to another with mutual trust and improvisation.  It is the melding of two hearts in one activity.  Making love is another kind of dancing.  So is playing a duet, playing catch, and singing in a group.  Any activity that requires us to come together in an instinctive way can be seen as dancing.   It is any activity that cries out for a partner.

I have and still do spend much of my time in solitude.  When you are much alone, you come to appreciate the joys of company.  Nothing feels better than moving with others in mutual trust and joy.  It is a real blessing.

This brings us to worship. What is worship, but a dance? CS Lewis once referred to heaven as "The Great Dance" and so it is. It is a place where the human and divine join into one, where we join together in a dance with the Divine.  We are like children dancing with their heavenly Father, swept up in His arms and being carried off the floor by Him, as He carries us around the room.  He responds to our fears and laughter as we allow Him to lead, and trust Him to carry us.

There is mutual response in worship.  God meets us on the level that we can understand. In turn, we move with Him according to our understanding of His ineffable presence.  We follow His lead, and He responds to our desires. Together we form a beautiful whole--a complete duet.

Is there only one kind of dance?  Only if there is one kind of person. Since people are a varied as snowflakes, God’s response to us is equally varied.  No two human-God duets are ever the same.   

That is why we have so many worship forms and styles, so many kinds of music.  To one, worship is a stately minuet, to another it is a passionate tango, to still another it is a countrified square dance.  God accommodates Himself to our tastes, meeting each where they are.

But the main point is this-worship requires a mutual response.  We do not worship God merely as part of a crowd, but in personal intimacy.  Just as any worship which emphasizes God's immanence over His transcendence misses the point, so does worship which emphasizes transcendence over immanence.  Going to church ought not to be like going to a play, or a concert, where the creative people are all on stage, but a dance, where each one of us is personally touched and led by Him.  Knowing God is not like going to a parade and watching Him go by.  It is an intimate act of mutual trust and inspiration, a rhythmic connection between our Creator and us, initiated by Him, but requiring our willingness to respond.

Our relationship with God cannot be static. It requires us to move and change.  We are constantly learning new steps with Him, and consequently finding new joys and more beauty.  There is more to worship than agreeing with universal principle.  We must also we willing to follow the moves of the Spirit. 

Dancing is scary.  It may feel uncomfortable at first. But one thing is true--it is also fun.  So is worship when we treat it as dance.