...I want to dance like David, because he danced with all that was within him . He danced like no one was watching. He danced with sunshine in his pockets. He shook his groove thing. I'll bet he danced in the rain, and in the street, and in the moonlight, AND in the dark. He got jiggy with it. He was better when he was dancing. And he always saved the best and last dance for his Lord!
The Bible tells us that this great man, this king, danced! This man, that even as a boy killed a lion with his bare hands to save one lost lamb, danced. (1 Samuel 17:34&35) Strength and gentleness and bravery and creativity all rolled into one kid! This isn't even the story he's most known for as a boy!
The past few weeks I've been in broken hearted mommy mode. I learned that a young man of seventeen took his life recently because he was ridiculed for something he loved. His heart was broken by his peers all because he was graceful and creative. And what hit me hardest is that he loved what my little boy loves. The stage and movement are his happy places. Up to this point, they have helped make him confident and sure that he is gifted and unique.
But sadly, he has chosen a path that for some reason the world around him has decided is silly for boys to pursue. He hasn't seen all the harshness of it yet. He hasn't heard the taunts and the snickers that are sure to come the older he gets. And as a mother I'm terrified at times about this beautiful rhythmic path he has chosen. It is a harsh world that can shape a young boy and I want to protect his heart from all the darkness in his music filled world.
Then I remember that he is a light. He's a light that has been an answer to my prayers, and we pray over him that he will always be someone else's answered prayer. He may be a small light right now, but his light can and will grow. As his mother, it is not my job to put that light under a basket or even hide it away behind closed doors. It's my job to feed it, to help it grow strong! It's also my job to teach him how to share it! To pass that light to others. To not be ashamed of who God has created him to be and the gifts He has placed inside of him.
Oh, to have the confidence that David had! As a boy he walked armor-less on to a field of battle with nothing but a sling and pebble to face a giant. As a man he walked in front of his kingdom without even his robe and danced. -- I wonder which was more terrifying?
On the one hand, there was a chance he would die for the God he loved, but on the other there was the possibility of his kingdom making fun of him, losing their respect in him, looking at him as though he were weak. But you know what... he danced anyway. He danced because God placed it inside of him. He danced for honor. And this was the man that was "AFTER GOD's OWN HEART!" (1 Samuel 13:14). He was called and commanded to be the captain over God's people. Strength and gentleness and bravery and creativity all rolled into one man!
That's man I want to teach my son that he can be! I pray the passion and strength that filled King David (a man that was by no means perfect, but that was chosen to lead and dance) flows through my boy. I pray he is never ashamed of the rhythm inside of him and that he teaches others that brave MEN dance!
I choose to cheer him on and dance beside him (even when he's a teenager and it embarrasses him ;) )
When we go home (and when we go out)... dance my sweet boy...dance like David!
