The Art of Flexibility

Imagine a tall slim figure standing erect poised to start a dance. Everything from the tip of her curved hand to the bend of her toes speaks of grace and control. Then, suddenly, a note hits the air and she's off spinning, leaping, and dancing as though the music lived inside her. What is it that keeps our eyes fastened on her? What is it that speaks of beauty and freedom and hope? It is the divine mix of grace and power poured into one human being. The strength of her muscles and the self-control of the mind that calls her body to be fully alert and yet appear to be effortlessly floating. 

I see it in the palm trees too. As the wind whips around them, they bend and sway just like that dancing figure. They appear to be effortlessly teased around by the wind, but their trunk stays sunk firm in the ground and deep below the surface their roots grow stronger still. There is an invitation for us as created beings to dance in rhythm with the song of our Creator. 

Now I realize that I am getting quite poetic here but I find it such a beautiful image of our life here on earth. I remember the first time I danced a Ceilidh with my now husband, I had no idea what I was doing. We hadn't had any previous practices and in this particular dance there was no one calling out the dance steps. Thankfully, Stephen grew up dancing Ceilidhs and was an expert so all I had to do was follow his lead and listen to the rhythm of the music. 

Fast forward six months to our wedding celebration where everyone was watching and videoing us as the bride and groom dancing. I still couldn't wrap my mind around exactly what the steps were for most of the dances, but I realized that if I just relaxed and let Stephen take the lead, we danced in harmony. I could trust his subtle nudges and gentle pulls to guide me across the dance floor with grace and ease, not because I knew what I was doing but because he did. What would it look like if we put this same trust in our Creator to lead us with subtle nudges and gentle pulls across the dance floor of our life? 

I find that living in the Middle Eastern culture requires a unique type of flexibility for me as a stereotypical Westerner. When I make plans with someone, I know that they may or may not show up depending on "God's will". If I ask when something will be done, I am given a day or time that will probably be twice as long depending on "God's will". On the flip side, I could bump into a friend at a store and go out for coffee or be invited into a neighbor's house for tea at any time. This view of time and relationship does not come naturally to me despite the many years of living here and often I find myself floundering wondering how to dance gracefully through life when it seems I'm tripping on everyone's toes. Sometimes I just feel like a hopeless mix of two cultures that I can never quite understand, but then I remember the dance.

The grace, the posture, the self-control, and the beautiful flexibility of a human moving to the rhythm of music. The grace, the posture, the self-control, and the beautiful flexibility of a human moving in rhythm with the Spirit. It is not knowing all the do's and don'ts of the "dance" but rather allowing our hearts to be moved by the nudging and leading of the Creator who is before and behind all things. In Him all things hold together. It is only through trusting Him, hearing the rhythm of His heart and listening to His song that we can have that peace of mind in the midst of the winds of life.