MAYBE WE SHOULD CELEBRATE MORE?

I recently wrote a blog about Israel’s deliverance through the Red Sea and how God closed the water over the Egyptian army so that not one of them escaped!  If you haven’t read it – you should check it out!

The very next chapter [Exodus 15] is the response of the Israelites.  It begins:

Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to GOD, giving voice together…  [v.1]

I have immediate questions about this.  How did they all sing together?  I mean, they didn’t have a copier there and distribute song-sheets! 

This was a large, multi-generational crowd of inter-related people!  They had just witnessed a phenomenal miracle that was clearly a God-intervention.  On the other side of the Red Sea – before this intervention – they had feared for their lives!  At the worst, they thought the Egyptian army would kill them all.  At the best, they would be returned to slavery in Egypt! 

But now they were free!  AND GOD DID IT!  And they were grateful! 

It was their natural response to sing and dance!  But how could they all sing together without knowing the words to the song? 

Perhaps it was done in an antiphonal fashion where Moses or Aaron [or some other gifted leader] sang out a line – and then everyone repeated it?  Perhaps this line was repeated over and over until even the people in the back of the crowd got it?  Just a thought. 

However it happened, it was a joyful celebration of God’s deliverance!  You’re welcome to read it, but here are the first few lines:

I’m singing my heart out to God—what a victory!
    He pitched horse and rider into the sea.
God is my strength, God is my song,
    and, yes! God is my salvation.
This is the kind of God I have
    and I’m telling the world!  [vs.1-2]

Then, Miriam the prophetess, Aaron’s sister, took a tambourine, and all the women followed her with tambourines, dancing.  Miriam led them in singing,

Sing to God – what a victory!

He pitched horse and rider into the sea!   [vs.20-21]

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I’ve been a part of joyous celebrations plenty of times, although nothing that would compare to what I’ve just described!  I wish we had audio/video of that! 

Recently, our Bethel congregation celebrated their first worship experience in the brand new sanctuary.  It took MUCH longer to build than was originally anticipated, so it was a greatly anticipated event.  The sanctuary was full!  The worship experience was jubilant.  And as a result the church is growing…

I guess the greater the sense of God-intervention, the greater the celebration! 

How do we get God-interventions? 

PRAYER! 

SEEKING HIS PRESENCE!

SEARCHING HIS WORD!

God acts in response to our appeals! 

In our land [the United States of America], if we want restored security, unity, bounty, spiritual renewal, then we should do more than vote.  We should call on God for His divine intervention and do so fervently! 

Maybe then, we’d have cause to sing and dance in the streets as well as our sanctuaries. 

Dancing Lessons

I read recently that people who dance regularly live longer, are less depressed, are healthier, and sleep better!  Scientific evidence supports the fact that those who dance 3-4 times per week have a significantly lesser incidence of dementia!  I don't know about you, but I want all of those! 

My wife's parents love to dance (and do it well).  They're in their 80's and are going strong! 

Fred Astair lived to be 88.  Gene Kelly lived to be 84.  King David lived to be 80. 

Dancing burns fat and is good exercise.  It gets the blood flowing.

I never learned to dance when I was young.  The church labeled it a sin back then. 

In Ecclesiastes it says there's "...a time to dance."  Jesus said, "We played the flute for you and you did not dance."  Psalm 149 and 150 say:  "Let them praise His name in the dance." and "Praise Him with the timbrel and dance..."  That all makes me think:  "It must be OK."

I think it all went bad when Herodias' daughter danced for Herod so that her mother could have John the Baptist beheaded.  I think from that point on - dancing has gotten a bad rap. 

The only real opportunities for me to dance with my wife are at weddings.  She's a good dancer!  I feel real self-conscious!  I often wish (while at wedding receptions) that I knew how to dance!  I admire people who look so smooth on the dance floor! 

We tried square dancing once.  I can twist.  I love the chicken dance and the Hokey Pokey!  I can electric slide.  I really think there's a dancer hiding somewhere inside me. 

Now that science is on my side, I really want to learn!  Anyone know where I can get some good dancing lessons?