Forever, my Love

Oh, I feel like dancing...

Last week, I started teaching my class a new worship song. I like to have a variety of songs, the more "traditional" Bible songs mixed with "modern" worship. I'd been thinking about I Could Sing of Your Love Forever, but wasn't sure how they'd like it. In the end, I picked that song as well as another more up-beat song, Joy. The chorus is simple and they quickly picked it up, but then there's the bridge (?) that they're not quite used to yet:

Oh, I feel like dancing
It's foolishness I know
But when the world sees the light
They will dance with joy like we're dancing now

This verse always reminds me of a story I heard a few years ago from a kids worship leader. If I remember it correctly, he was practicing this song and he saw his daughter standing behind him from the reflection of a mirror. She asked him about the dancing part and what foolishness meant. So he told her and she seemed kind of confused. What's silly about dancing because of God's love?

He thought about it and told her it's not silly to dance. She walked away and he resumed his playing. This time when he got to the bridge he changed the lyrics,

Oh, I feel like dancing
It's not foolishness I know
But when the world sees the light
They will dance with joy like we're dancing now

He looked up and saw her reflection once again in the mirror. She was dancing. Since then, every time I hear this song that is what I think of. Why sing that it's foolishness to dance because of God's love? It reminds me of 1 Corinthians 1:18, "For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."

Doesn't this say something about how reserved we are in our worship? Should we think (or even) sing that's its foolish to praise the Lord by dancing? I don't think so. I think we should be less inhibited in our worship. This is what I'm going to do. Next week, I'm changing the lyrics...

Oh, I feel like dancing
It's not foolishness, I know
But when the world sees the light
They will dance with joy like we're dancing now

What can wash away my sin?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus;
What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Oh! precious is the flow
That makes me white as snow;
No other fount I know,
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Isn't that what we all want? To be made whole?

What can make me whole again?
Nothing but the blood of Jesus.

Made to Worship

You and I were made to worship
You and I were called to love
You and I are forgiven and free

You and I embrace surrender
You and I choose to believe
You and I will see what we were meant to be

- Chris Tomlin, Meant to Worship


What I love about this song is that it's so basic...it's the fundamentals of our walking in freedom, faith, and fullness in Christ. We were created to worship God the Most High. We were called to love the Lord and others--the believing, unbelieving, enemies, etc. We are forgiven and free. We are now able to embrace surrender. Surrendering our all to the Lord...giving our whole being to Someone much great and more worthy than ourself. In these things we see what we are meant to be.

It's so simple, but I love the proclamation.