Our Spiritual Dance

The best and most beautiful things in this world cannot be seen or even heard, 

but must be felt with the heart.

Helen Keller

Our oldest daughter, Karina, studied classical ballet for more than a decade. Every time she went to class, the instructor had the group start with warm ups. Week after week, year after year, the students would run through a series of exercises before actually beginning to rehearse.

The instructor – who had been a dancer herself – knew that such practices would build strong muscles and increase movement memory. Karina spent hours of intense practice, learning the dance movements, and strengthening her legs so she could dance “on point”. These were building blocks from which her body took its cues. This physical regimen laid a foundation of technique upon which entire dances eventually would be choreographed.

Even more, our daughter’s continual “breathing in” of the dance steps and the music embedded a deeper understanding into her heart and soul, from which her body also took its cues. Later, on stage, she “breathed out” this understanding into a fluidity of movement. The inner understanding, laid over the mastery of physical technique, transformed mere ballet positions into the visual telling of a dramatic story. 

Spiritual practices are like a spiritual dance. Activities such as Bible reading, prayer, worship, communion, journaling (and more) train us and shape us, preparing us to meet God in everyday life. They help us “breathe in” God and experience an ever-deepening union with him. They transform us, equipping us to “breathe out” his love. They take some time and effort, yet the reward is a visual telling of a dramatic story; the story of Jesus at work in us. 

If you and I want our spiritual dance to reflect the beauty of Jesus, breathing him in through spiritual practices will help us breathe out his life and joy. 

What spiritual practices might Jesus be inviting you to embrace?

Let me offer a prayer as you walk into your day.

Dear Jesus, thank you for loving us and inviting us to know you better. I pray that readers of this blog will delight to enter into a spiritual dance with you. May their dance steps reflect the ways you have touched their hearts, making them beautiful reflections of you…each and every day. In Your Name, Amen.