Lessons from the Dance Floor

Some of you know that I have been taking ballroom dancing lessons with my husband! For those of you who know him well, this might come as quite a shock. Yes, this is the same boy that would refuse to dance and said he hated dancing AND bought us a package of dance lessons. He really seems to enjoy it too! So far I have stepped on his toes twice and he has not returned the favor.

Our first lesson we were taught the "basic principles of leading and following". With subtle pressure applied to my palm and back, Will was taught to steer me around the room while I had my eyes closed. The lesson isn't called "magic" for nothing. I found myself responding without hesitation and dancing was suddenly so easy. A few minutes into it though I began to watch for patterns. We made two "boxes" moving backwards and one "box" moving right, I bet we're going to move right again. I began to guess and anticipate the next move resulting in fumbling feet and our instructor's intervention. I also struggled with trying to stop executing my own plans. "Let's go this way", I'd urge, trying to apply similar pressure on Will's palm. Or "Come on Will, I loosened my grip on your palm. You know what that means, spin me around!". Soon I learnt that was futile and had calamitous results. I have concluded that things work best when I have my eyes closed. Then we're moving around the room easily, there are some promenades and some spins and complete trust.

Isn't that the case with faith sometimes? I struggle often with trying to find out what God is doing, trying to find patterns, trying to steer Him and telling Him in prayer what I'd like Him to do next. And then there are times I give up and quiet myself and close my eyes and suddenly life's dance is so much smoother.