Serving in Dance Ministry and being a student of God's Word has bibically put Praise Dance Ministry in proper perspective. For years I over spiritualized Praise Dance Ministry. I did this out of sincere ignorance.
In this post, and in posts to follow, I want to share with you the error of over-spiritualizing Dance Ministry. Over-spiritualizing something simply means to take that thing (concept, action, knowledge) and understand it or treat it beyond what Scripture teaches. Sometimes we value our experiences, convincing coincidences or personal convictions over the Word of God. Our experiences or personal beliefs are relative, certainly not authoritative, subjective, and ever changing. It is important, especially in this ministry, to understand that God's Word is the final authority and our beliefs and experiences must fall in line with it.
To give you an example of how I fell into the error of over-spiritualizing Dance Ministry - years ago I had the mindset that dance unto the Lord in itself had power or spiritual ability. I thought that my dancing for God can heal, deliver, and help change people spiritually and do damage in the kingdom of darkness. I thought my warfare movement did something spiritual. Likewise I thought if I had the right moves, the right song, the right garments...or if I even danced hard or wild enough then my dance had spiritual impact. I believed all of this while I was disobedient to God, my parents, leaders, fornicating with my boyfriend, watching any and everything on TV, allowing my mind to think on things that were not pure, lovely or of good report (Phil. 4:8). I did not discipline myself to cast down imaginations and high things that continually warred against me to exalt itself above what I knew to be the knowledge of God (2Cor. 10:5). I did not let the Word go to work in me nor did I lead a lifestyle of prayer. I still wanted to do my own thing along with some things that have to do with God- like Dance Ministry. Despite my adulterous lifestyle I really thought I was doing something for the glory and benefit of God's Kingdom until one Scripture slapped me down.
James 1:22 - "But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves."
God visited me and immediately conviction took over. I heard in my spirit "YOU are a liar!" Then right behind it the devil came like he always does with his old trick of "did God really say that?" because he does not want me delivered, and I began to play the blame game. I began to tell the devil he was a liar and what I heard in my spirit was not God, but him (the devil). So I told him he was the liar. Then God said, "NO...you are." I humbled myself before God, repented and deliverance began as I made daily choices to exercise myself unto godliness (1Tim. 4:7). In doing so I noticed a dramatic change in myself and the ministry of dance and teaching that God has called me to. So while spiritual impact on God's end can't be measured by us (John 3:8), we can sure measure the effectiveness of it on our end (2 Peter 1:6-8 ).
Spiritual Impact = the power to affect the lives of others through our service (work, deed, ministry, life, words) simply because we are yielded to the Holy Spirit and our witness is true. PDCM's definition
I learned through the Word that spiritual impact has nothing to do with how skillful my dance was. Let me give you an example...something I am sure we all have witnessed before.
Did you ever sit in church and someone began to sing? No they did not sound like an angel from heaven, Mahaila Jackson or Pastor William Murphy (they can SANG...). In fact they had no voice at all - squeaking, off key and everything - but there was something that pushed you past all of that and it was beautiful! So beautiful and inspiring that you began to cry and praise overtook you and the entire congregation. Have you ever been in a atmosphere like that? That is spiritual impact. It was not the singing. It was the witness in her/him that was true and it had authority in the words of the song and it became life. We knew that person was a living witness of the truth of God they sung about. The glory of God's abiding presence that rested on them manifested itself in their praise and all we could declare, at that moment, was to God be the glory.
Praise Dance Ministry should never be over-spiritualized. One thing that I have learned, and am still learning, is that the dance is not the ministry. We are. The substance of our life gives meaning to all ministry or service. Without substance, without the truth of God abiding in us - that is a life yielded to the Holy Spirit - there is and never will be spiritual impact. Our dance will be nothing more than just a nice performance a group of people did on a Sunday morning. My prayer is that your ministry will carry the weight of God's glory, not because of your training or what you know, but because of who you Know. Without Jesus Christ our dance is reduced to exercise or a performance for the spectacle of man. With Jesus Christ our dance is the vehicle for God to use the truth and spiritual gifts He has placed in us (His substance) to minister life changing truth that brings conviction, encouragement, comfort, edification, joy and love to all humanity.
Sonia Kong, PDCM
*PDCM is a unique ministry. We not only teach one how to dance unto the Lord, but our main focus is on internal substance...the "stuff" that makes Dance Ministry what it is.
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