In a house full
of student teachers, we don’t get out much. But in celebration of a roommate’s birthday, we took it upon
ourselves to embrace the true culture of Oregon: line dancing. I love to dance, however, I wouldn’t
consider myself gifted in the area.
But seeing as I always have a good time playing “Just Dance” on the Wii,
and I’m always looking for new ways to get in a workout, I figured the night
should be fun, or at the very least, eventful.
When we arrived
at the Silver Spur, the scene I saw as I walked in the door was not at all what
I expected. Yes, there were people
dancing; yes, they were wearing cowboy boots; yes, there was country music;
yes, there were even a few cowboy hats.
But the looks on the faces of the people dancing was not at all what my
imagination had conjured up on our long (roundabout) way to our Friday night
hangout. And trust me, I had time
to create a pretty vivid image in my mind, as we were lost for a good ten extra
minutes. Their faces were
lifeless. They weren’t smiling,
singing, or appearing to have a good time in any way. This is not what the movies show line dancing to be like;
the people in the movies are always smiling and having a ball.
Not having a
clue how to do the “shuffle step,” the “chasse,” the “hoedown throw down,” or
the “wild wild west boogie,” we decided it best to sit out the first few dances
in an attempt try to gain some sort of knowledge on this supposedly festive,
but seemingly lifeless, form of dance.
After getting up
the courage to brave the dance floor, our group of 8 decided to join in. We weren’t exactly naturals… our
performance during the first few dances was actually rather pitiful. I stepped on a few toes, ran into a few
“regulars,” and laughed my way through “Redneck Girl,” “Watermelon Crawl,” and
“Boot Scootin’ Boogie.” I watched
the feet of the regulars, and man with striking similarities to Alan Jackson
called out the moves for our hopeless group of “city folk.”
Maybe our
dancing was inhibiting the “groove” these naturals had established before our
chaotic arrival, but I saw a change in their lifeless faces. People were smiling (disregard the fact
they were probably laughing at us). People seemed to be having fun. Maybe they liked the challenge of
having to dance around a bunch of obstacles. Maybe they liked seeing new faces. Maybe they just really liked the way I was singing “Boot
Scootin’ Boogie.” But there was
finally joy on the dance floor.
Sometimes God
brings us into situations where we feel like we have a metaphorical pair of two
left feet. It can be
intimidating. You might end up
feeling like you have nothing of value or skill to offer. And you may feel like you’d prefer to
sit outside the dance floor. I
don’t mean to make light of the importance of God’s call with my reference to
line dancing; following His will can be a scary and intimidating thing. But it is an important truth to
remember that God uses us in our weaknesses to be lights and servants to the world
around us.
“And He has said
to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in
weakness.’ Most gladly, therefore,
I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell
in me.” -2 Corinthians 12:9
Prepare to be
surprised in how God uses your weaknesses (possibly even more than your
strengths) in your service. Maybe
your role in service will end up looking a lot different than you imagined, but
trust that God has the power to use you in the way He calls you… even if He’s
calling you to do the “Boot Scootin’ Boogie.”
