“You have turned my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent” (Psalm 30:11,12 ESV).
When one stands before the presence of Almighty God, we can prostrate ourselves before Him, stand in awe, jump and leap with exuberant joy, or dance out of excitement. For some, Jehovah, is a straight-faced, extremely serious God who never shows His teeth. He doesn’t laugh, wears a frown, isn’t moved by our antics, and drinks lemon juice all day long (a sourpuss). He is viewed as one to be revered in utter silence. And if we sing, it’s monk-style chants. If we rejoice, we dare not smile. As I shared a few years ago, the praise and worship leader of our NY-based church, had a special dance for him and his wife. His father, a pastor at another church, grabbed his wife’s hand, and told his group something like, let’s go to be with real Christians, as they exited the event.
NEWS-FLASH!! God’s alive!! Always has been! “God was in Christ reconciling the world to Him” (2 Corinthians 5:19).
There are millions of reasons for desiring to dance and leap before His presence!! He’s not a dead God. Now, we’re not talking about sensual dances, here. We’re talking about adoration, gratitude, worship, thanksgiving, etc… A grateful heart cannot contain the joy that comes from knowing you’re saved. Additionally, knowing your name is written in heaven is doggone good enough for dancing before Him!
Look at it this way, every year near Christmastime, some well-off man heads out to some Walmart and pays off up to $20,000 in dept for unsuspecting customers. Some owe a little, others owe a lot. Almost everyone has a story to tell; one may have lost a job, another doesn’t know how to pay their rent; another might be unable to get their kids gifts, etc…But when they hear their debt has been paid off, they’re exuberant! Imagine!! Your debt of sin has been paid off by Jesus!!! That’s a whole lot more than any outstanding debt! It’s a debt no man can pay off on their merits. You should be having the greatest Christmas boogie of all time!
King David’s wife, Michal, probably viewed God as described above-boring and unmoved, which caused her to judge and criticize the King. For that, she remained barren all her life. It’s better to dance!
So, go before Him now. Thank Him for all His wonderous gifts, including forgiveness of sins and His love for you. Receive His acceptance by faith. In confidence, dance before Him! If you’re in a rush, dance the Hustle! Otherwise, slow-dance before Him as you enjoy His presence!
“Then shall the young women rejoice in the dance, and the young men and the old shall be merry. I will turn their mourning into joy; I will comfort them, and give them gladness for sorrow” (Jeremiah 31:13).
God Bless!
“let them praise his name in the dance:” (Psalm 149:3a).
Sam