Sometimes I can’t turn off words that want to come out upon the page. Like trying to contain a two year old on a playground, they can’t be corralled. I believe someone needs to know today’s truths God wants me to impart.
Maybe it’s you.
When God won’t let me alone, I wrestle with Him a lot less than I used to. It’s one of the things I’ve learned over time— God knows what He’s doing and that may require me to interrupt what I am doing. It’s always worth it, because He will do something wonderful when we follow in His will. Not always do we get to see what He’s doing, but sometimes He shows us. With that, I’m writing today when I thought I’d be doing something completely different … tackling my “to do” list. God has something (or someone) far more important to take care of — YOU!
The more I surrender to God, the more I hear Him say. Sometimes He is loud in His not letting go of an idea – this one of those times. Teaching through song lyrics, because He knows music speaks to our souls. Music can say things mere words cannot. Music has the ability to ingrain itself in our memory. God can dust off a song we heard years ago and help us learn what He desires to teach us today.
Life’s a dance you learn as you go. Sometimes you lead. Sometimes you follow. Don’t worry about what you don’t know. Life’s a dance you learn as you go.
I hadn’t heard John Michael Montgomery’s “Life’s a Dance” in years. So what was God trying to teach me, to remind me of, so I could share it with you? Give it a listen if it’s been awhile since you’ve heard it.
I’m studying 1 Corinthians right now. While I was answering one of the Bible study questions, as if right on cue, the cassette recorder in my brain pushed play.
Life’s a dance you learn as you go. Sometimes you lead. Sometimes you follow. Don’t worry about what you don’t know. Life’s a dance you learn as you go.
Isn’t it reassuring we don’t have to have all the answers?
Want to know a little secret? We never will. And that’s okay. We’re not supposed to worry about what we don’t know. We’re supposed to enjoy the dance and learn as we go. Doesn’t that sound a lot more appealing?
The apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the church of Corinth,
Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.— 1 Corinthians 3:5-8 NKJV
God gives the increase.
When God wants something to happen, He will grow it. When God wants us to know something, He will make sure He is clear in the telling of His truths to us. He loves us too much not to give us the increase in understanding and revelation He knows will bring growth to you and me.
Sometimes, if we’re honest, we don’t want the increase. We want our comfy cozy world to keep us safely snuggled.
Sometimes we want something more, but we’re afraid of what lies beyond that which feels like safe borders. In reality, “safe borders” may be a cage attempting to contain us.
I was once a captive. Slave to so much. And then I was set free. If I’m honest (and what’s the point of saying anything if I’m not), I wouldn’t have chosen the path that led to my liberation. But God in His ultimate knowing of what is best refined me in adversity’s fire. With that being said, I’m glad God did it the way He did.
Some of you wading knee deep in life’s quicksand may think I’m crazy. Who is glad God made them walk through adversity? No one, right? Maybe. Or maybe not.
I wouldn’t be who I am today had I not walked through some really horrible stuff. I can almost guarantee you I wouldn’t know God, and I wouldn’t know His unending, never-ceasing, eternal love for me. And because I do know Him now and how awesome it is to have an intimate relationship with Him, I am not sorry I had to go to hell and back (figuratively speaking) to get to the place where I can hear His voice teaching me and helping me to teach others.
He has radically changed my life and I never want to look back … except when sharing my story helps others to see God’s hand. Maybe you need to know change is possible. It is. I’m walking, living, breathing proof of God’s goodness when we lean into Him and receive His love.
If you find yourself in a place where you feel like you’ve been led to a figurative hell, have hope. Your life doesn’t have to be like it is. If we were having coffee and I was sitting across the table from you, I’d reach over, gently grab your hands to comfort you, and I would have you look in my eyes as I poured out to you some of the things God has done in my life. You’d see tears. Grateful tears on the side of God’s triumphant victory over tragedy. Amazing things that would not have been possible had I not known Him. And I would not have known Him had that adversity not been brought into my life. I was too stubborn. Independent. All my performance reviews said so.
You want to know what else? You don’t have to be alone. You don’t have to be independent. You can depend on God. Surrender to Him and let Him give you the increase in understanding you need. It’s not about striving to know Him more. Surrender to Him. Collapse into His arms if you need to … that’s what I did. And He has helped me to dance! That’s my prayer for you. I pray any adversity you are wading through right now, right this very moment, that God will help you to dance again when maybe your world feels like it’s been demolished. Nothing and no one is too far beyond God’s reach. He’s the most reliable dance partner you will ever find.
In the day of prosperity be joyful, But in the day of adversity consider: Surely God has appointed the one as well as the other.—Ecclesiastes 7:14a NKJV
It may not make complete sense to you right now why God would allow adversity. That’s okay. I had to grow in that too. I understand some because I can look back now and see how God has used those experiences to shape me. Like a beautiful piece of jewelry formed from melted silver, those adverse experiences have molded me. I can wear them as evidence of God’s goodness, because He has delivered me through much.
I pray you overcome life’s adversities through the power of Christ and wear them as evidence of God’s goodness in your life too. I pray He places many precious gems in life’s necklace He is making for you. Let Him link the elements of your life together like a necklace, not a chain that binds. He desires to set you free even if it’s through adversity.
Why is God willing to use adversity? Our alternative is hell. He never wants that. He wants us to receive Him and all the love He has for us. We choose. But He will keep putting before us opportunities to say “yes” to Him until the day we die. He’s kind of persistent that way. And I’m glad He is. Sometimes some of us need an extra nudge or two in order to surrender.
If this is a nudge for you, I pray you say yes. Maybe you will. Maybe you won’t. Either way, I’ve done my job. I care; I want you to say yes to all God has for you. I just can’t put that kind of pressure on myself.
Who then is Paul, and who is Apollos, but ministers through whom you believed, as the Lord gave to each one? I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase. Now he who plants and he who waters are one, and each one will receive his own reward according to his own labor.— 1 Corinthians 3:5-8 NKJV
I am one of God’s ministers now. —Oh, if only you knew how radically different that was from my past. From a muddy mess of a life to one of God’s ministers … makes me smile as I shake my head in amazement.—In your life today, I may be like Paul or I may be like Apollos. Maybe God is using me to plant a seed in your life so that one day you will say “yes” to Him. Perhaps maybe I am watering a seed God used someone else to plant in your life along the way. Regardless, it is God who will give the increase. God will teach you how to dance with Him.
I know because He’s taught me—even through all my stumbling. Now I get to thank Him for teaching me some new dance moves. I want to share a prayer I prayed today in the hopes that if you are not already dancing with God, you will desire to do so.
Thank You, Lord, for helping me to dance. Thank You, Lord, for leading me across the dance floor. Thank You, Lord, that we get to enjoy life with you and learn as we go. Thank You that You do not expect us to have all the answers (for we never could—even if in our heart we wanted to do all from A to Z to please You). Thank You, Lord, that You already DO find us pleasing—even with our flaws and failures. For it is through adversity that You have also helped us to grow. That, too, is part of the dance. Thank You, that You were there, too, dusting us off when perhaps it wasn’t our best performance. You never wanted us to perform anyway. You wanted to take our hand in Yours and help us to dance with dignity and grace. You are the Good Father who empowers us through grace to dance with grace. Thank You, Lord.
For those of us that do believe, isn’t it reassuring that God is responsible for the increase? We plant and we water. Together our efforts accomplish God’s purposes. As long as we do what God leads us to do, Scripture promises we will be rewarded for our labor. He’s responsible for the results.
None of us has the power to save another person. Only God can do that. Let’s plant and water well and point people to the One who can transform lives. Let’s trust God to show up and bring the increase His Word promises. Let’s step out boldly and share our stories of what God has done in our lives. Scatter that seed upon soil regardless of its condition. We just never know how God will increase our little to accomplish His much.
There’s one point of clarification I’d like to close with. We all have different roles to play at different times in someone’s life. Maybe we are the mentor. Maybe we are the mentee. We lead and we follow. But always and forever FIRST follow Christ and allow Him to be the leader of Your life. It is only then that we can effectively lead anyone else. If someone is not following Christ, don’t follow them. Where that destination leads, no one wants to go.
Life’s a dance you learn as you go. Sometimes you lead. Sometimes you follow. Don’t worry about what you don’t know. Life’s a dance you learn as you go.
QUESTIONS & ACTIONS
If God is directing you to dance with Him and you are hearing it for the first time as a desire of your heart, pray this prayer.
God, I surrender. I can’t do this life on my own anymore. I’m tired. I need you to carry me and comfort me and help me to learn who You are. I don’t know what to do, but I’m going to believe what I just read… that You will bring the increase. You will teach me who You are and how much You love me. I will believe You will show me what to do. Help me to follow Your steps, Lord. I say “yes” to You and all that You have for me. Teach me to dance with You all the days of my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.
- Have you ever thought of God as your dance partner?
- If not, how could life be different if you did?
- What is He teaching you as you “learn as you go”?
- What is God revealing as He dances with you?
- How does that differ from previous seasons of life?
- How does God want you to dance today? I pray God reveals how – specifically -He desires you to dance.
About the author: Tracy Stella is a Christ-follower on the journey of life, seeking to see God and His will for her fulfilled on this great adventure. She feels compelled to share the story of God’s hand in her life with the hope that readers will search for and see God at work in their own lives. Jesus writes the greatest story of all. It’s called Redemption for those who are willing to surrender to His love and leading. I pray God continues to write a glorious story in each of your lives. Amen.
If you found this helpful or inspiring, consider sharing it with others. Thank you for reading and God bless!