As a child, I loved to dance. We lived in an old farmhouse. A previous owner converted an upstairs bedroom into a huge bathroom. I would lock the bathroom door and sing my heart out as I twirled around the room. Even as a clumsy child, I danced in abandon.
NOTHING REMAINS THE SAME
The joy of dancing with unrestrained joy dampened with time. Nothing ever remains the same on this earth. On the way I stumble over minor things. At the worst, I run through seasons of depression and even full panic attacks. Just maintaining an open relationship with Jesus is never an easy route.
I wonder, over the years what became of that child who danced with abandon; not worried about what was coming ahead.
THE EBB AND FLOW
Ecclesiastes 3:1-14 describes the ebb and flow of life. There is a season for every activity under the heavens. 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; a time to tear down and a time to build, a time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance. It is difficult shifting gears from joy to sorrow and then reversing from sorrow to joy. How can one dance when the music and God’s tempo change?
AND YET ANOTHER CHANGE
Recently I became a substitute teacher. I choose the days, the school district and and the approximate student age and subject matter. Let me tell you, every day is a surprise when I take an assignment. There are so many variables in working with students and the dynamics in a classroom. Sometimes I arrive at a school and even the best lesson plans provided by a school are in shambles. We live in a world where things can go wrong.
THE DECISION
So what do I do? I make a conscious decision. I choose to trust in Him. God knows the school, the students, what will happen that day. No ebb and flow ever take Him by surprise. God supplies the dance music and metronome for each minute of my day. He offers the heartbeat of His soul.
EVERYTHING BEAUTIFUL IN ITS TIME
He has made everything beautiful and appropriate in its time. He has also planted eternity [a sense of divine purpose] in the human heart [a mysterious longing which nothing under the sun can satisfy, except God]—yet man cannot find out (comprehend, grasp) what God has done (His overall plan) from the beginning to the end. (Ecclesiastes 3:11)
HE IS SUFFICIENT
He is amazingly sufficient. My Heavenly Father calls me not only to trust, but also to dance as I find rhythm in His timing. I may not be a ballerina, but I’m continually striving to find the beauty of moving to God’s symphony of life even in this season of my life. I hope you also dance!
