06 Sep Come & Dance
David and all the house of Israel were dancing before the Lord with all their might, with songs and lyres and harps and tambourines and castanets and cymbals.
2 Samuel 6:5
Key point:
Using our whole selves to worship God
There are many ways in which we can worship the Lord.
- We can kneel and pray;
- Raise our hands to the sky;
- Sit quietly focusing on a single candle flame;
- Sing;
- Offer ourselves in service;
- Share in a meal;
- Dance…
…to name but a few.
When we worship we are not doing some standalone action. It is not a particular movement or sound. We are offering our whole selves as a living sacrifice. Dancing isn’t the only way to worship the Lord, our God, but when we think of dance we often think about moving, responding to something without inhibition or fear, we let go of something, it opens us up to joy.
“Dance is the hidden language of the soul”
― Martha Graham
Although this session is entitled “Come & Dance”, it is not really about dancing as such, at least it’s not just about dancing. It is about coming before the Lord, however and wherever we are. When we dance, when we offer ourselves fully to Christ, we use our whole selves, moving in harmony with the music of God’s creation.
When Jesus, God incarnate, walked among us as a man, he taught us how to join in with the melody, showing us how to move, how to respond to cosmic rhythm of creation. His ministry is not a passive “sit and watch” ministry, it is a call to action, a “get up and move” ministry. A call to use our whole selves, not to sit and watch someone else doing it.
In addition to our dancing and Messy activities this month, we will also share in Communion. This is not a one-way thing, we are not just receiving the bread and wine, but also opening ourselves up to the living presence of Christ. In doing so we are inviting Christ into our whole selves, bringing us back into the rhythm of the whole of creation, not just taking part in, but becoming part of this huge cosmic dance that is life!
| Activity | What it involves | Point |
| Making music | Make shakers and ribbon twirlers. | In the psalms it tells us to Praise him with trumpet sound;
praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! |
| Dancing puppet | Using various cutouts and split pins, decorate and make your own dancer. | When we dance we don’t just use one arm and wave it around, we use our whole bodies. In this way we can express a feeling or tell a story. In the same way when we come to worship we use every part of ourselves. |
| Clay modelling | Using the clay, make sculptures showing the different ways in which we can worship! | To remember that singing and dancing aren’t the only ways to worship God |
| Pray | In the chapel there will be some quiet music playing, to sit quietly and reflect with. Take a piece of paper and a pencil and respond to the moment of peace. Add it to the prayer wall. | Worship isn’t always about singing and dancing, prayer is also worship. To speak with God is to be in relationship with him |
| Dancing in the garden | Throughout there will be worship music in the garden for the children to come and dance to alongside bubbles. | Just for the sheer joy! |
Songs:
Teach me to dance – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wk7nPfuAiLg
Come on and dance – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqN60AkRGrY
Every move I make – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Tr5eUBTClw
All of these, plus more, have been added to the YouTube play list – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL9vwkSFhOXc9wp9SARjhlOFcul8K1WSWY
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