The Dance

               Every so often God and I get into some deep talks at around 2 am.  I’d like to share today’s discussion with you.

I can remember watching my daughter dance “just because” when she was a toddler.  I can remember watching in ballet class when she was around 4 or 5 years old.  But my favorite memories are teaching her dance.  It would start with her (literally) standing on my feet as I danced.  Later, she managed her own steps.  We danced at her wedding.  And I also taught others how to dance with her. (No, I did not let the young men stand on my feet!).  So last night, as I was praising God at 2 am, I started thinking about David “dancing before the Lord” (2 Sam 6:14), and God and I had a talk about it (He talked, I listened.  After all, that’s part of being still).

God delights in watching us dance.  Even when we don’t think He’s watching, or aren’t even aware He’s watching, He is.  And he delights.  God delights in our joy (I’m talking here of joy, not necessarily “happiness”.  There are many things we think make us happy, that God isn’t too excited about.  But joy comes from the spirit.)  What may start out for us as joy in a “thing” or “event” becomes magnified into a joy for the dance itself.

God is a gentleman – He wants more than to watch, but He’s not going to just cut in.  He yearns to be invited:  “Dance with me, Daddy!” and He wants us to let Him lead.  Even more than watching us dance with joy, God loves to dance with us in joy.  This is shared love and trust.  This is no longer just a joy of dancing.  It is a joy that comes from dancing with the Lord of the dance.  And when we dance with the Lord we become grace-full, for God is patient and loving in that dance.  He gives us grace when we lose the beat, or make a mis-step, or trip on our own feet, or step on His.  He takes even our mis-steps and somehow incorporates them into the dance and creates something beautiful and timeless that we are a part of.  Something that is overflowing with love and joy.

But God doesn’t stop there.  It is that love and joy that others standing on the sidelines see.  And they hunger for it.  They yearn for it.  And God tells us to invite them in.  God is big enough that the dance is personal, but not individual.  Whatever comes to you mind at this point – line dancing, mosh pit or ballet – God knows the steps.  And He takes them all and somehow combines them through love and grace and power to make a beautiful choreography.  This is love between us and God, and between us and others (Matthew 22:37-40). 

There is a $25 seminary word that describes the Trinity – perichoresis.  It is the idea of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit dancing together.  The cool thing is, you’re invited to the dance!

Advice to the young men in my life: (Learn to) Write a Letter!

 Dear young man:

           When I think about letters in my life, three major sets of correspondence come to mind.  First, I remember as a young man, getting letters from my grandmother.  They were always addressed to “Master Johnny King” – which, of course, I thought was VERY cool.  She would tell me about small things in her life. Of course, I would “have” to write back (I saw it as a chore back then).  My letters inevitably started “Dear Grandma:  How are you?  I am fine.”  Trying to find things to say about a young boy’s life that would interest my grandmother seemed difficult.  It was not until many years later that I understood it wasn’t so much the content of the letter that mattered, it was the contact itself.  As I grew older, Grandma continued to write, even when I didn’t.  She would send clippings of Bloom County, knowing it was my favorite comic strip.  I remember her letters were always so much fun to read – they provided a sense of home and connectedness.

            The second correspondence I remember is between me and my girlfriend/fiancée.  I was in San Diego and she was in Reno.  Back then there were these things called “long distance phone calls” and they cost money!  We talked by phone no more than once a week.  But we wrote each other often.  Those letters were easy to write, though I confess often repetitive in nature as I talked about how much I missed her and how much I loved her.  Those letters also provided a sense of connectedness as well as hope and love.  There was also a sense of expectation – of eagerly checking the mailbox each day and the joy of finding a letter there. 

            The final set of letters in my life are the letters I receive from the children I sponsor through Compassion International.  These letters are handwritten (sometimes by teachers, for the children too young to write).  They sometimes sound like the letters I wrote my grandmother, but they are full of love!

            I still have the letter my grandmother wrote to me when I graduated medical school.  I still have the letters I received from Marji (and she still has the ones from me).  And literally have 3 binders full of the letters from our compassion kids. Re-reading all these letters bring back precious memories and deepen relationships.

            E-mails are convenient, certainly.  I remember being on deployment and being able to e-mail daily. And yet I would still write longer “letters” sent by email to family and friends every month.  Yet despite the convenience – or maybe because of it – e-mails have their down-side.  Let’s start with the “art” of writing.  It was bad enough that I would write “Dear Grandma:  How are you?  I am fine?”  But e-mail (and texting) encourage even worse:  “How r u?”  “IDK”  “lol” and so on.  There is something about taking the time to write out a sentence fully – artfully – that makes letters personal.  You invest a part of your life in letters.

            Now, being an old-fashioned guy who still prefers holding a book in his hands to reading something on my iPad, it should come as no surprise that I also find something “tangible” in holding a letter that has a person’s handwriting on it.  How many e-mails a day to we delete?  (How much junk mail do we throw away each day?)  I don’t know about you, but I certainly don’t have any e-mails that are 30+ years old.

            A few final thoughts:  Second to a nice long letter is a hand-written note.  A thank-you note, a get-well card, a note of encouragement.  These hand-written “moments in time” still contain a piece of the person who wrote them.  They speak of consideration given in time and thought.  Lastly, good letter writing skills will prove themselves when it comes to finding a job.  Sending a letter of intent (even if attached electronically), a letter of thanks for an interview, etc can make a tremendous difference.

            The one time I can still anticipate a letter is with Christmas cards.  Even so, it is not quite the same.  They are personal, but not individual.  They do increase connectedness and relationship, but sometimes it seems more like a Christmas ritual than a true correspondence.

            So here is my challenge to you:  write a letter.  In fact, make it a habit to write a letter – shoot for once a month.  And send it by regular mail – I guarantee it will brighten someone’s day (maybe even your own).

With much love,

Pastor JC