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Thought for the Week
By Christian Dance Fellowship of Britain
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Bible Verse
"The Lord your God is with you,
He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with his love,
He will rejoice over you with singing – or dancing."
Zephaniah 3:17
Reflection
Who would have thought it? Five years ago, people would have laughed in scorn & said, ‘How 1970’s!’ But a few months later, there we all were, every age and background, glued to our televisions each Saturday evening for ‘Strictly Come Dancing’. And it’s more popular than ever. One of the reasons has to be that dance is such a joyous expression of – well, simply being alive. It’s great to watch & great to do, whether it’s like Peter Kay’s comic dad-at-a-wedding routine, or the breathtaking skill of an international dance company performance. People of all sorts and conditions are getting back onto the dance floor again. St Paul exhorted the Christians in Rome to ‘offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – which is your spiritual worship.’ (Romans 12: 1)
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Finding new and creative ways of worshipping God
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Spiritual worship can only be expressed, of course, through physical means - because that’s what we are: creatures, fearfully and wonderfully made, designed to move and speak and sing and work and run and play and rest and eat and sleep and embrace and laugh and weep and dance – and, in so doing, to glorify and honour our Creator. CDFB was born in 1990, aiming to serve Christians who use movement and dance as an expression of their faith. For some, it’s part of their personal worship. For others, it’s how they earn their living. Pretty much all dance forms have been represented, from ballet to hip hop, from ballroom to flags and banners. Workshops give opportunities to develop technique, to try new movement forms, to discover how prayer or healing or spiritual warfare can be explored using movement; there have been workshops specifically for men, or for children, or for families; there is a whole ministry specifically for young people; there are opportunities for dance for wheelchair users … the list goes on. Have a look at the website: www.cfdb.org.uk. So: something for everyone. Finding new and creative ways – or re-discovering older ways - of using our bodies to enjoy or intercede for God’s lovely world. Realising that He is indeed the Lord of the Dance, as some translations of that verse in Zephaniah reminds us. If our God Himself dances over us with rejoicing, what will be our response? How might that inform our perspective at the start of this New Year?
Prayer Pointers
- For all working professionally in the Arts:
- for those who find themselves isolated professionally as Christians
- for maintaining integrity, and for courage to make Godly choices when opportunities for work present themselves
- for Christ’s beauty and truth to be evident in their lives and their art-forms
- for all Christian arts organisations
- For CDFB:
- for Jan Dyer, the national coordinator, and all the regional coordinators, for
administrators, committee members and others, all of whom work voluntarily:
for God’s leading, guidance, grace, support and provision
- For the 7th International Conference, hosted by CDFB, to be held from 11 – 17th July in St Andrew’s, Scotland: ‘Ancient Paths, New Horizons’:
- For everyone around the world thinking of booking, that any obstacles in their path would be removed and that they would find the necessary finances, especially those on limited incomes and those coming from poorer countries
- For all those administering the conference: wisdom, grace, energy, a sense of humour in the face of any obstacles - and faith to believe that what God has promised, He will accomplish
- For more helpers, for financial provision: especially for money for bursaries for teachers and participants for whom costs, especially travel, are prohibitive,
- For more information: www.icdf2009.com
- For the 3rd CDFB National Youth Dance Event: Saturday 21st February,:
- That everyone whom God wants to be there will find a way to come,
- For Paula Hocking, CDFB Youth Co-ordinator : for her work inspiring, teaching, mentoring and encouraging young people
- For a new generation of dancers to be inspired, challenged and envisioned, and to discover how their God-given abilities can be used and enjoyed
- For all God’s people to embrace the wonder and truth of our Creator’s singing and dancing for joy over us – this New Year, and always.
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