Dancing Through the Darkness

I recently read an article in the Health Monitor titled - DANCING THROUGH THE DARKNESS. The article was about Julianne Hough and her battle with endometriosis. I have become a very big fan of ballroom dance so the title of the article and Julianne's picture on the cover immediately caught my attention. I was inspired and intrigued as I read about how she suffered for 5 years with her pain. As I read about her recovery and how she was able to "dance a lively jive that involved twisting, spinning, jumping..." just two weeks after the surgery, I started to feel like there was something wrong with me. Why wasn't I able to bounce back so quickly? I haven't bounced back as quickly because I haven't been fighting this fight with the right weapons. In my previous post LORD LET ME DANCE, I wrote about how I dance through everything. What I also must do now is pray healing over my body as I dance. This setback has not only been physical but spiritual, mental & emotional. As I sat in church yesterday and watched the dancers give praise with their arms lifted up, I remained seated. One of the dancers asked me why I wasn't standing and I pitifully answered "It hurts". I felt so small after I said that. How dare I refuse to offer praise because it hurts! What if Jesus refused to remain on the cross because it hurt. This is spiritual warfare and dance is my chosen weapon. God has plans for my life and I am blocking my blessing by giving in to the pain. So tonight as I exercise, I pray & dance - dance & pray. I praise God for Julianne's speedy recovery. If you are living with pain, speak directly to the enemy and let him know your body is the temple of the most high. Push the negative thoughts out of the way. Become a fierce prayer warrior. Declare healing and DANCE! I Dance Because...

Daily dance with Jazz

I look forward to my daily dance with Jazz everyday. Its actually just a walk to the park with my dog named Jazz but it is so cathartic. Usually I take my ipod and leave my phone home. I used to take my phone just in case something happened but I would always get interrupted by an unnecessary phone call. I thought taking my ipod would help me worship. Occasionally I would hear a song that would help me recognize and acknowledge the goodness of God but when I started leaving my ipod home I began to really see the greatness of God. As I walked t the park I noticed the shapes of the trees and how their limbs and branches hung. Even the trees seemed to be dancing. I began to marvel at how everything in nature is just so perfect. Jazz loves our daily dances. It used to annoy me how she never walked in a straight line. Her pathway in front of me was always zig-zag, back and forth-sentinel. She was guiding and protecting me - always looking around to make sure nothing got to me. I thank God today for my daily dance with Jazz. It helped me appreciate Gods love and His protecting hand in my life. It also helped me appreciate where I am and who I am in Him. It cleared my head, my heart and my nose so that this cold I thought I had, turned out to be a heavy, heavy weight I no longer could hold. God's got it now! I feel so much better knowing that from now on when I take my daily dance with Jazz, I dance because of GUIDANCE - God, U & I DANCE together. idancebecause...

Lord Let Me Dance

I've been stressing lately on why I've been unable to dance. I suffered a painful rotator cuff injury in November and 5 months later, I'm still in pain. I've had pity parties with myself and complained until no one will even listen anymore. So now I'm gonna just pour my heart into what I know I was called to do (Thank you Rev. CAM). Ted Shawn wrote "...I believe that dance is the most perfect symbol of the activity of God and His angels. I believe dance has the power to heal, mentally and physically..." Ted Shawn is partially correct. When our dance is focused on releasing our negative feelings and invoking the presence of God - then yes, God will heal us through our dance. I think for too long I've made DANCE my GOD. I've been dancing for God for a long time but when life situations halted my dance, I just sat down without a fight. I complained about how bad my arm hurts and how I felt like a fish out of water because I can't dance full out. So now what do I do? I dance! I dance because it is my life line to God. I dance my prayers. I dance because it is what God has told me to do. I dance through my strengthening exercises for my shoulder. I dance and allow God to use me to help others. I write about dance and then I dance some more. I seek God and wait for Him to answer. Most of all, I pray, God will restore me to full health. idancebecause...