I love to praise God through dance, and I love the Church. I love to share this praise in church with the people of the Church, and I want them to understand more about this dance we do and why I love to do it so much.
What is praise dance?
Praise dance is not performance, it is ministry.
Praise dance is not cute choreography paired with a churchy song, it is a prayer too deep for words.
Praise dance is not entertainment, it is an outward expression of inward worship, an overflow of what is in the heart, an invitation to join in adoration of the One deserving of all exaltation.
Why do people praise dance?
If I had words to adequately explain what is happening in praise dance, there would be no point to praise dance. Praise dance exists because it cannot be explained. It is an expression of the unexpressable. In dancing, I can express things that I do not have words for. Dance communicates emotions that words like "gratitude" and "awe" and "love" seem to pale in comparison to. Words are good, but they are insufficient to express adoration for a savior who left heaven to become a baby in order to rescue his enemies and make them his friends. Movement can sometimes convey depth that words fail to articulate. Dance is a visual narration of the reverence and adoration for God that the Holy Spirit constantly produces within his children. When words fail, dance is an opportunity for the dancer to use their entire body to talk to the living God.
Of course, dance is not a perfect language. It goes beyond words, but it still leaves gaps by failing to fully express the greatness of our God. Our God is so great that no rhythm or lyric or verse or choreography can fully communicate his greatness. Our God is so great that the most magnificent works of human creativity and expression can only scratch the surface of his majesty. Our God is so great that after an eternity of expressing his greatness in ways that we cannot imagine, we will not have even begun to get tired of worshipping him.
I praise dance because God's goodness compels me to worship him in every way that I possibly can.
I praise dance because doing choreography in unison with my dance family to worship our God together encourages me.
I praise dance because my words alone leave a lot to be said.
What is it like to praise dance during a church gathering?
I rarely feel as vulnerable as I do the moments before and after ministering a dance to a congregation. Dancing in front of people is like extending my prayer journal to them and inviting them to read it from cover to cover.
For this reason, I never quite know what to say when someone tells me we did a good job. That is what I tell my students when they ace a quiz. But... good job worshipping God? How does one grade someone else's worship?
What, then, would be a better comment to make? Did our dance capture something that you have felt? Tell us that. Did our dance encourage you? Tell us that. Did seeing our praise inspire your own? Tell us that. Are you thankful to have seen us dance, feeling moved or comforted or reassured, but not sure what to say? "Thank you" is perfect.
Who is praise dance for?
Praise dance is for God. The primary audience of praise dance is God alone. Without him, the dance has no meaning. It is nothing but pretty choreography at best. Praise dance is visual poetry, a Holy Spirit inspired intimate communion between God and dancers.
Praise dance is for the dancers. For praise dancers, rehearsal is just as important as ministering the dance on Sunday morning because rehearsal is when we minister the dance to one another, over and over and over. Rehearsal is when the dance begins again as soon as it ends. Rehearsal is when the dancers can dance unrestrained and uninhibited, free from the distractions of the congregation and the fears and unease that a human audience motivates.
Praise dance is for the congregation. The primary audience of praise dance is God, the One recieving the praise, but the secondary audience is the congregation. When dancers minister a dance, they are preaching good news with their bodies and telling a story of God's goodness. There is a message they want to communicate clearly through the language of choreography. They come with an invitation for the congregation, not only to observe an intimate moment, but to participate in it, to join in worship to the King of kings. The prayer before dancing is that God would be glorified, that the congregation would recieve the message, unite their hearts in worship with the dancers, and see even more clearly than before the beauty of Jesus Christ.
What is praise dance?
Praise dance is not performance, it is ministry.
Praise dance is not cute choreography paired with a churchy song, it is a prayer too deep for words.
Praise dance is not entertainment, it is an outward expression of inward worship, an overflow of what is in the heart, an invitation to join in adoration of the One deserving of all exaltation.
Why do people praise dance?
If I had words to adequately explain what is happening in praise dance, there would be no point to praise dance. Praise dance exists because it cannot be explained. It is an expression of the unexpressable. In dancing, I can express things that I do not have words for. Dance communicates emotions that words like "gratitude" and "awe" and "love" seem to pale in comparison to. Words are good, but they are insufficient to express adoration for a savior who left heaven to become a baby in order to rescue his enemies and make them his friends. Movement can sometimes convey depth that words fail to articulate. Dance is a visual narration of the reverence and adoration for God that the Holy Spirit constantly produces within his children. When words fail, dance is an opportunity for the dancer to use their entire body to talk to the living God.
Of course, dance is not a perfect language. It goes beyond words, but it still leaves gaps by failing to fully express the greatness of our God. Our God is so great that no rhythm or lyric or verse or choreography can fully communicate his greatness. Our God is so great that the most magnificent works of human creativity and expression can only scratch the surface of his majesty. Our God is so great that after an eternity of expressing his greatness in ways that we cannot imagine, we will not have even begun to get tired of worshipping him.
I praise dance because God's goodness compels me to worship him in every way that I possibly can.
I praise dance because doing choreography in unison with my dance family to worship our God together encourages me.
I praise dance because my words alone leave a lot to be said.
What is it like to praise dance during a church gathering?
I rarely feel as vulnerable as I do the moments before and after ministering a dance to a congregation. Dancing in front of people is like extending my prayer journal to them and inviting them to read it from cover to cover.
For this reason, I never quite know what to say when someone tells me we did a good job. That is what I tell my students when they ace a quiz. But... good job worshipping God? How does one grade someone else's worship?
What, then, would be a better comment to make? Did our dance capture something that you have felt? Tell us that. Did our dance encourage you? Tell us that. Did seeing our praise inspire your own? Tell us that. Are you thankful to have seen us dance, feeling moved or comforted or reassured, but not sure what to say? "Thank you" is perfect.
Who is praise dance for?
Praise dance is for God. The primary audience of praise dance is God alone. Without him, the dance has no meaning. It is nothing but pretty choreography at best. Praise dance is visual poetry, a Holy Spirit inspired intimate communion between God and dancers.
Praise dance is for the dancers. For praise dancers, rehearsal is just as important as ministering the dance on Sunday morning because rehearsal is when we minister the dance to one another, over and over and over. Rehearsal is when the dance begins again as soon as it ends. Rehearsal is when the dancers can dance unrestrained and uninhibited, free from the distractions of the congregation and the fears and unease that a human audience motivates.
Praise dance is for the congregation. The primary audience of praise dance is God, the One recieving the praise, but the secondary audience is the congregation. When dancers minister a dance, they are preaching good news with their bodies and telling a story of God's goodness. There is a message they want to communicate clearly through the language of choreography. They come with an invitation for the congregation, not only to observe an intimate moment, but to participate in it, to join in worship to the King of kings. The prayer before dancing is that God would be glorified, that the congregation would recieve the message, unite their hearts in worship with the dancers, and see even more clearly than before the beauty of Jesus Christ.
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