Today is my birthday. It’s weird to think about, but I was born on this exact date 30 years ago (that’s right, today I’m the big three-o!). It’s hard to imagine it now but I once weighed little more than five pounds and fit snuggly into the arms of my mom and dad. I don’t remember those baby days, but I do know that soon after that first birthday, I started to dance.
All babies dance. It’s innate. No one has to tell them to bounce with the washing machine or sway with the breeze. They just do it. My good friend Bekah says, that’s because dancing is from the Lord.
Not only is this birthday a reminder that I’m no spring chicken, it also has me wondering where the dancing has gone. Life has a way of taking the dance right out of our hearts. Age seems to inevitably usher stress, sadness, fear, and anxiety into our lives and those carefree days of baby bouncing fade quickly away.
But God has given me much to celebrate. He has certainly given me cause to dance.
Jeremiah 31:13 says, “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.”
Psalm 150:4 says, “Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!”
Psalm 89:5 says, “Blessed are the people who know the passwords of praise, who shout on parade in the bright presence of God. Delighted, they dance all day long; they know who you are, what you do—they can't keep it quiet! Your vibrant beauty has gotten inside us— you've been so good to us! We're walking on air! All we are and have we owe to God, Holy God of Israel, our King!” (The Message).
Life certainly has its share of troubles. As the years pass, there may be good reason to allow our shoulders to sag and our toes to stop tapping. But God has given us infinite reasons to celebrate. His grace alone is reason to dance.
This year, I’d like to reclaim the sweet moves of childhood. No matter what challenges lie ahead, I want to be glad because God is good. I want to choose joy. I want to celebrate. I want to dance.
Will you join me?
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