LET EVERYTHING THAT HAS BREATH PRAISE THE LORD!
Psalm 150 lifts us the central claim that God should be praised and worshipped through any and all means available to us. Among the elements that we should use in our praise to God are the sound of the trumpet, the harp and the lyre, tambourine and dancing, strings and flutes, and with the clash of cymbals. In other words, dancing as a means of offering praise to God is central to our faith as Christians and as old as the writings of King David himself. It was King David who set the example for dancing as a form of praise to God when he danced before the ark of the Lord as it was being brought into the city of Jerusalem in II Samuel 6: 12-15. Miriam the sister of Moses danced in praise to God when God delivered the Israelites at the Red Sea and caused the charging chariots of Pharaoh’s army to be drowned when the waters that parted for Israel came crashing down once more (Exodus 15: 20). People of faith have long seen dancing before the Lord as a powerful form of worship and praise.
Within the African American church community our sense of dancing before the Lord is equally well established. As far back as the days of slavery in North America the African slaves practiced a dance called the Ring Shout in which they worshipped and praised God together. Of course, that Ring Shout dance was brought with them from Africa where dancing is central to almost every aspect of communal life. Just last week when the World Cup soccer tournament began in South Africa, no less a person than Bishop Desmond Tutu was seen dancing when South Africa scored the first goal in that globally televised tournament. Dancing runs deep in the DNA of the African American church both as a matter of faith and also of culture.
Tonight we are gathered with this long-standing idea in mind; dancing as a form of worship and praise. There are things that words cannot capture, but that a dance move, a facial expression, a waving banner or a leap of joy can bring to life. That is what the Dance Ministry at Antioch Baptist Church is all about; bringing to life the deepest feelings and emotions that we as Christians hold dear in our hearts. Our burdens are lifted and our faith is celebrated when we watch the dancers. Our hands clap and our feet stomp and our hearts rejoice when we watch the dancers. Some of us may even want to get up and dance along, but we restrain ourselves and stay in the pews. Still, we are completely caught up in the experience.
It is my hope that all of this will happen to each one of you during this time of worship and praise through dancing. I have no doubt that every dancer views themselves as being an instrument in the hands of God as they dance before the Lord. I can only hope that you will see this event as a time of spiritual nurture; not as a time of entertainment or performance. Tonight is an extension of Psalm 150 where everything that has breath is praising the Lord. Dancing is one of the primary ways by which the Lord can and should be praised. Welcome to “God Still Heals.” Who knows, someone may be healed in body, mind or spirit while these dancers praise the Lord tonight!
The Rev. Marvin A. McMickle, Ph.D.
Senior Pastor
