In the gospels, Jesus makes a stunning challenge. He calls his disciples to have faith like a child. When I think about children, I think first about their incredible passion. Children have no problem getting excited. In fact, they get excited about almost everything…Disney World, getting a toy, or even going to the movies. They get excited about things we think of as ordinary. As we get older, it seems that passion and wonder begins to diminish. It typically begins when you hit sixth grade…that’s when you become “too cool for school.” As adults we never seem to grow out of that apathy. It becomes difficult to regain that same sense of excitement and passion…even when it comes to our relationship with God. However, there is one person in the Bible who did not lose his ability to be excited.
In Second Samuel we see King David dancing and singing for the Lord. There was a great celebration of worship because the Ark of the Covenant was finally being brought back to Jerusalem. There was a huge crowd with people laughing and shouting and playing instruments. Everyone was having a great time except one person…David’s wife Michal. It’s says that when she saw David dancing and leaping before the Lord, she became angry and mad. I’m not sure if it was because David was the king and she thought he should behave more dignified and noble…or maybe David’s dance moves were just that bad and he was embarrassing her. Whatever the reason, Michal gives David a sarcastic scolding when he gets back. David replied, “I was dancing and worshipping before the Lord. And I am willing to act like a fool in order to show my joy in the Lord.” Then he says (I love this verse), “I will become even more undignified than this...” Basically saying, “If you thought those dance moves were bad, just wait till next year!” David wasn’t going to let anything or anyone keep him from worshipping God. He didn’t care how foolish it made him look or how it would make him stand out. This was a time to celebrate God’s faithfulness and he wasn’t going to let anyone stop him.
God needs Christians who are willing to be undignified. There are enough people in the world who are bored and cynical. He needs people who are passionate about doing His work…who have childlike excitement about what God is doing in their own lives and what He is doing in the life of the church.
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| Kenzie had a passion to put birthday cake on my face :) |
