Phillipa Williams
Apr 20, 20203 min
It's 1982. I'm a freshman at David W. Carter High School in Dallas, Texas. For two years, I was "Flute,1st Chair" in the junior high school band. Now, I wanted to dance. My Band Brother, Dwight, was not happy. We had spent years refining our sound. I would miss the camaraderie, but things were different now.
I had to dance.
My mother couldn't afford to pay drill team fees, so at fourteen I went to work. School, eat, sleep, work. I did what was necessary to get what I wanted. I did what was necessary to get closer to my dream.
This was also a time for great R&B music. Atlantic Starr was one of my mother's favorite, so they quickly became mine. Every since the Resurrection season a few weeks ago, one of their most compelling lyrics has been ringing in my ear:
Closer than close, well
Closer than most
I just see so much in you
And I want a better view
I want to look deeper into you, yeah
This could have been the anthem for how I sacrificed in order to dance. Dwight didn't understand. My band mates didn't understand. But my mother did. I danced around our apartment all the time. She saw regularly our furniture's location being slightly different from when she left home because I needed the space. Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Parliament Funkadelic, Marvin Gaye, Mahalia Jackson... they all made me want to move.
To this day, music and dance connects with me like nothing else. When I dance, I feel closer to the art and the heart of the music; closer to its creator, closer to how they feel.
I give myself to it, and it gives itself to me.
I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20 NIV
Right now. Today. God is asking you to do the same.
Think about it... the one thing the world requires that we NOT do in this season is the one thing God IS requiring us to do...
Get closer.
When will you EVER get another chance like this?
Totally involved, well
You make my whole world revolve, yeah
Well, it feels so right and I know I'm hooked for life
Infinite endlessly, yeah
Church hurt is a valid concern, but that excuse won't work now.
If you want God, do want is necessary to get what you want.
The invitation of JESUS is for ALL the world to "Come"
~out of delusion
~out of strife
~away from indecision
~beyond material ambition
~outside the church and into the kingdom of His LOVE.
Dr. Cecelia Williams Bryant, "I Dance with God"
These words were published in 1995, yet ring truer than ever today.
It's time to dance... with God. Get hooked... on God. Be set free... by God. In song. In prayer. In worship. While cooking dinner. Washing dishes. In your secret closet. Do what is necessary to get want you want.
Heaven is asking, "May I have this dance?"
I'll say it again...
When will you EVER get another chance like this?
Let's get closer.
Ballerina image from pexels.com
If this reading has blessed you, please share and remember to subscribe!
And please, be safe!
WRITER | MENTOR | TEACHER
LOVER OF CHOCOLATE
PURPOSED TO EMPOWER
35+ YEARS MINISTRY LEADERSHIP
PREACHER OF THE GOSPEL
Phillipa also the Founder of ilooklikeLOVE, Inc., a 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization providing diaper assistance to families in need and opportunities for mothers to empower themselves.
Look for her upcoming book,
GOD n Me: Finding My Place in Forever.