2 Samuel 6:14-16 And David danced before the Lord with all his might, and was wearing priests’ clothing. So Israel brought home the Ark of the Lord with much shouting and blowing of trumpets.
(But as the procession came into the city, Michal, Saul’s daughter, watched from a window and saw King David leaping and dancing before the Lord….)[Living Bible]
Summary
David was the second King of Israel. He was a gifted warrior, writer (of psalms) and musician. The first time David tried to bring The Ark of the LORD into the City of David he failed. The first time David mobilized thirty thousand special troops to get the Ark of the LORD. But instead of carrying the Ark, they put it on a new cart and brought it to the house of Abinadab. David and the other leaders were joyously waving branches of juniper trees and playing every sort of musical instrument before the LORD. They thought everything was fine. But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, one of the oxen stumbled and Uzzah, one of the men, put out his hand to steady the Ark and the Lord’s anger flared out against Uzzah and Uzzah was killed instantly.
Even though David was at fault for not having the men carry the Ark on their shoulders, David became angry with GOD at what the LORD did to Uzzah. David was also afraid of the Lord, having seen HIS anger against Uzzah. So, David decided against bringing the Ark into the City of David. Instead, he instructed that the Ark be taken to the home of Obed-edom, a foreigner from Gath. The Ark stayed with Obed-edom for three months. During that time the LORD blessed Obed-edom and all his household.
When David heard about how GOD was blessing Obed-edom, he wanted the Ark brought into the City of David. This time, the men carried the Ark into the City. When they took six steps or paces, they stopped so they could worship and sacrifice before the LORD. Then David, with all his might, danced before the LORD. David danced with abandom, leaping and dancing before the LORD! David did not care who was watching, what others thought, or how he looked. David was just praising GOD, with all his might, through dance.
DANCING
Dancing can transform the body and the spirit. According to “Let’s Dance to Health,” from AARP, February 14, 2005:
Dancing can be magical and transforming. It can breathe new life into a tired soul; make a spirit soar; unleash locked-away creativity; unite generations and cultures; inspire new romances or rekindle old ones; trigger long-forgotten memories; and turn sadness into joy, if only during the dance.
Like yoga, dancing is a mind and body workout. For example, step classes, ballet classes, ball-room dance classes, swing (East Coast, Texas,West Coast swing) classes, hip hop and Zumba classes have a number of sequential movements, requiring both co-ordination and memory. “Let’s Dance to Health” states that: “Researchers are learning that regular physical activity in general can help keep your body, including your brain, healthy as you age.” Also:
There has been some promising research in this area, according to Rita Beckford, M.D., a family doctor and spokesperson for the American Council on Exercise. For instance, a 2003 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that ballroom danc-ing at least twice a week made people less likely to develop dementia. Research also has shown that some people with Alzheimer's disease are able to recall forgotten memories when they dance to music they used to know.
See, “Let’s Dance to Health,” from AARP, www.aarp.org.health/fitness-info.2005.
In WebMD article, “Dancing Your Way To Better Health” by Miranda Hitti, Hitti notes that dances such as tangos, waltzes, sambas and foxtrots (ballroom dancing) require that the dancer go backward and forwards, use core muscles, back of the thigh and buttock muscles. Dancing can get the heart rate up and a dancer will often use a number of muscles not often used in other forms of exercise such as walking. According the Hitti:
Dance is a "moderate activity," say the USDA's physical activity guidelines. Adults should get at least 30 minutes of moderate to vigorous activity daily, according to the guidelines.
See, “Dancing Your Way To Better Health, by Miranda Hitti, www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise.
Just because you are in a wheelchair doesn’t mean you can’t dance. American DanceWheels teaches Wheelchair Ballroom and Latin Dance. Wheelchair dancing integrates people with and without disabilities and can be enjoyed by people of various ages. For more information about their educational programs, Skype lessons or their recreational facilities and their program for veterans, see: http://www.americandancewheels.org/index.htm.
For those with other limited mobility problems, there are a number of chair workouts, including Gospel Chair workouts. For example, see Paul Eugene’s Gospel chair (dance) aerobic workout: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pa_trd1hhFs.
As always, if you are thinking about beginning dance exercise, and if you have health problems or other medical conditions or concerns, you should always consult your physician first.
I HOPE YOU DANCE
In the 2008 Tyler Perry movie, “The Family That Preys,” is a song called “I Hope You Dance.” The song was originally a country pop song written by Mark S. Sanders and Tia Sillers, but it enjoyed cross-over success in the Perry movie when Gladys Knight* sang her rendition for the film. Some of the lyrics of the song are as follows:
“I Hope You Dance"
I hope you never lose your sense of wonder,
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger,
May you never take one single breath for granted,
GOD forbid love ever leave you empty handed,
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean,
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens,
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance,
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance.
I hope you dance....I hope you dance.
Today, I hope you get your fill, strengthen your faith and spiritually dance, praising GOD!
Be joyful, dance, give GOD all your praise and BE BLESSED!
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*Listen to “I Hope You Dance” by Gladys Knight at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gM_UJbTMY0M [paste in your browser]; or go to You Tube and put in the name of the song in the search box. The song was written by Lee Ann Womack.
