Jesus asked me to dance with him...

I've been thinking about "withness" a lot lately. Am I with people very often? Am I with God very often?

I don't mean in terms of accepting the same general space physically, but intimately, being together, vulnerable and truly with another.

This idea has been haunting me lately. I was raised to be independent, strong, a leader. Independence was next to godliness, and being a leader was the most Christlike thing to be... but now I think that's all bull.

Life is about following, not leading. We are to follow Jesus, who was a follower himself. Over and over again Jesus said that he could only do what he saw his Father doing, and only what his Father told him to do.

Jesus was a wonderful follower... am I?

As I've been reflecting on my job with Young Life, and starting a new ministry in Ladera Ranch, I've gotten the feeling that I am being invited to participate in something that is already happening. I'm not actually starting anything.

The music is already going.

People are moving to the rhythm.

And now, Jesus has come over, grabbed me, and asked me to dance this dance.

This image hit me square in the face, and resonated deep in my heart. It brings tears to my eyes and excitement to my body. Jesus, the one who the dance is for, has asked me to dance with him!

When a person dances with another they are close, it's not a side by side sort of thing, or even a next to each other sort of thing, they are with each other. There is a vulnerability involved, especially from the one following. In giving yourself to the one leading the dance you are trusting they know what they are doing and intentionally not acting on your own impulses to take charge.

What a wonderful picture of life with God!

So, my prayer is not that I would do things for God. Not that I would lead others, or do some great ministry deal, or even be known as a strong person of the LORD, but that I would dance. That I would be known for simply being involved in a beautiful dance with my Maker, the lover of my soul, the one who knows me perfectly and loves me perfectly. 

I want to be known for being lost in this dance with Jesus, trusting that he knows the tune and the steps far better than I, and that his incredible love for me will keep him from ever dropping me or leading me astray.

I don't want to do, I want to dance.

Jesus asked me to dance, and trembling, I said yes... I pray that this becomes a posture of life for me.

Peace.