One of my favorite passages in the Bible is in Second Samuel chapter 6. David is finally able to return the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. He was so excited he “danced with all his might before the Lord.” I love the picture I have in my head of David dancing for God, and I want to dance, too.
I heard a sermon recently at my island church. The visiting pastor was using Psalms 31 as his anchor text, and at one point he made the statement that in this Psalm, David is trusting God with all his might. So let me get this straight, I can dance AND trust God with all my might?
That got me thinking, and I’ve been pondering the question of expending energy. David did everything with all his might, meaning he did everything full out with as much energy as he had. He sinned monumentally, he repented monumentally. In many ways, I think I am like David in this way. I don’t do things half cocked. I rarely stop at ‘good enough’. Years ago I posted the motto for the Lego company in my classroom – “Only the best is good enough.” I believe this. I appreciate Abraham Lincoln’s admonition, “Whatever you are, be a good one.” It feels good to be sore and bone weary (or brain weary, depending…) but look back at what I’ve accomplished and see that it’s been worth it.
Thankfully, my husband sees things just like I do. He’s an avid dancer. Yay!
There is a downside. For everyone who is out dancing through life with all their might, there are those who aren’t. David experienced one aspect of this downside. When he was out dancing with all his might, his wife Michal became really ticked at him. The Bible tells us how embarrassed she was by her husband’s lack of decorum. They had a huge argument over it. So there it is. Dancing with all your might can alienate you from those who don’t get it and think you are a little nuts or a lot fanatic.
There’s also the way that those who aren’t dancing effect me. Most of the time, I can live and respect our differences. When someone around me schleps through the days doing the bare minimum to get by, I first feel sorry for them thinking they just don’t know how good the dancing feels. Sometimes, though, if the person is someone close to me or someone I need to count on, I can feel betrayed or disappointed. If the ship is sinking and I’m the only one bailing, the disconnect can cause a new kind of trouble. The question becomes how do I keep dancing without being distracted or angered by others’ actions? A perfect illustration of how it feels can be seen in the facial expressions and actions of the second minion from the left in the following link. I laugh myself to tears every time I watch this!
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