On Dancing and Serving
This is coming from someone who really can’t dance. My parents also didn’t let me listen to secular music growing up either.
So I led a Boston Harbor cruise event for my young adult ministry (mostly single adults). Here’s the thing that will annoy some of the more conservative posters here. We had dancing on the boat. And we danced to secular music.
Some of you will think I’m flaunting my “Christian freedom”. I’m not. Here’s the point of the story.
We were walking back to our cars later that night and we accidently ran into a friend in a life threatening situation. I won’t go into details, but this friend had not been on the cruise and we hadn’t seen her in a long time. She had sort of fallen off the deep end. God literally opened up a door for us to help her out and minister to her.
It raised questions in my mind. What if we hadn’t gone to the boat cruise, who would have helped her? What would have happened to our friend? Why hadn’t the friends she had come with helped her?
Our first thought was how much this was God’s timing. Boston has a population of 600,000, what were the chances of us meeting our friend? He put the right people there too, because we were able to address the situation in an appropriate and God pleasing manner.
I don’t think God wants us counting all the rules we keep. We can get like the rich young ruler, telling Jesus “all these I have kept.” (Matthew 20:18-21). However, like Hosea 6:6 says, “For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.”
August 20th, 2007 at 3:14 pm
Matt - you are free to do whatever you think, but your premise about God’s providence doesn’t substantiate anything. It is a faulty dicodomy at best.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:20 pm
Henry - I think what you are saying is that dancing and secular music are a false dichotomy, right?
August 20th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
I’m not going to comment on the rightness or wrongness of the cruise or the dancing to secular music but I will say this….
The fact that you and others were right there in time to help a friend doesn’t justify the boat cruise or dancing. This is not God giving you a “clue” that what you did prior to meeting the needy friend was right (or wrong). God certainly could have arranged some other situation for your friend.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:22 pm
No, I’m saying those things are personal issues, but because you were able to help a girl that night doesn’t necessarily mean that God approved of the cruise. That’s all.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:23 pm
Last sentence should read “God certainly could have arranged some other situation for your friend had you not had the boat cruise”.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:25 pm
Yes, this is probably the poorest written part of of my post. I guess I get annoyed when the critics write about how wonderful they are at separating themselves from the world and the opportunities it provides them to minister. God can use whatever he wants.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:27 pm
I actually wish our friend had been on the cruise. She knew about it and decided she wanted to hang out with some unsafe friends instead.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
It raised questions in my mind. What if we hadn’t gone to the boat cruise, who would have helped her? What would have happened to our friend? Why hadn’t the friends she had come with helped her?
I say it happened exactly as it was supposed to. There never was a Plan “B”. Just like “Jesus had to go through Samaria…” (John 4)
God is good…glad to hear you were (providentially) able to minister to your friend.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
Timothy - Yes, I should/could have written that. However, the chance of her running into the right (not drunk) people at 1 am in the city of Boston, was incredibly slim. Literally, we turned the wrong corner and ran into her.
Instead of praising God, it appears that some are starting to strain the gnat.
August 20th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Thanks Keith!
August 20th, 2007 at 8:58 pm
“Straining the gnat”
:rolleyes:
If it ain’t one thing, it’s another. sigh.
August 20th, 2007 at 9:32 pm
Matt,
While I rejoice that you met her and I agree with you. I’m going to have to disagree with you that simply because they don’t agree with you doesn’t mean that they are “straining a gnat.”
Personally, I could care less if you want to dance, or listen to secular music. My wife and I danced on our engagement night on a boat dinner cruise to secular music. To me, these are two separate issues and one does not validate or invalidate the other. If you had not met your friend that night (again, Praise God that you did) IMO it would not have meant that you shouldn’t have gone on the cruise. So to be fair, I can’t say b/c you did meet your friend it means you should have gone on the cruise.
August 20th, 2007 at 10:55 pm
If you saw the rhythm-free and talent-less way I danced, you’d have no question that it was a sin.
August 21st, 2007 at 5:31 am
All right, I understand the weakness of what I wrote. Feel free to disregard this post.
August 21st, 2007 at 5:42 am
Wow, Matt, open confession of being less than perfect from a Christian blogger, no less. We all, in the emerging community, are better for it!
August 21st, 2007 at 12:02 pm
re: the following comments: The fact that you and others were right there in time to help a friend doesn’t justify the boat cruise or dancing….because you were able to help a girl that night doesn’t necessarily mean that God approved of the cruise. From my theological perspective, everything is God’s timing. God, never turns to Jesus (figuratively speaking) and says: “Well, how about that! I never say that one coming!”I find it very interesting that some might question whether the cruise/dancing/music was right or wrong (especially on this site). Your being able to minister to a friend is no more validation of God’s approval of dancing than a church seeing tremendous growth (numerically) is a validation of His blessing on that ministry. Just because the woman at the well was saved (I believe she was) doesn’t mean that God approved of the fact that she had been married five times.QUESTION: What’s wrong with secular music if it’s OK to play Pink Floyd’s Money during the offering or a U2 song during a worship service? I think some people ARE straining gnats.