You Gotta Keep Dancing

In Tim Hansel's book, You Gotta Keep Dancin', there is a life-lifting poem that has transformed my life when my life becomes frustrating and intense. It's called “Did You Ever Doodle, Lord?” I’ve used this short snippet before, but it’s worth reading again in times like these. 

"Lord, did You ever do something silly just for the fun of it? For example, did you ever sit and doodle in the air, floating somewhere before you had this heavy world upon your hands? Did you ever let yourself go and take a wild ride across the galaxies or tie up a rainbow in knots without a thought of what someone else might think? Are the platypus and the kangaroo a couple of your favorite jokes that you keep around for laughs? 

"Come on, God, let's loosen up the world a bit. Let's use the fireman's hose to knock off the hats of all those cats who stiffen up their backs. They think they own this town! Let's stop traffic for a day. Let's have a ticker-tape parade for all the orphans we have made. Let's turn the land into a fair, throw confetti in the air, and celebrate that you have come to join us here. Come on, God, let's go...! If Jesus Christ means anything, it means He's one of us, and His resurrection isn't just a dream for dying men. Jesus is the One who's come to bring this globe to life again!" 

Some people might think or say Tim Hansel, the author of the reading above, is weird. Here’s my assessment. Tim’s not weird, he’s exotic. Here’s what Tim is saying. “Relax, cool your jets, get a checkup from the neck up, take a deep breath. Like that song says, “Have You Never Been Mellow?” Mellow isn’t giving in. Mellow is handing the reins of control we are holding to God. If we’re getting too intense, we need to back up and find out where we left Jesus.  

Like most people, when things get intense, I get emotional. When I get frustrated, angry, or fearful, I lose perspective and get darn right obnoxious! Does that happen to you, too? Charles Swindoll says that life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it. Knowing this truth and applying this truth are two different things.

Here's a story called "Two Wolves" that illuminates what to do in times of frustration. One evening, an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two wolves inside of us all. One wolf is evil. It is anger, envy, frustration, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other wolf is good. It is joy, peace, love, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith." 

The grandson thought about it for a minute and asked his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?” The old Cherokee replied, “The one you feed.”

It’s OK to be concerned. It’s not OK to have a panic attack. Here's your plan of attack when you're close to a panic attack. I have invented what I call the “S.T.P.S. Strategy" - S.T.P.S. means “Stop, Think, Pray, and Say.”

I STOP letting my soul and emotions rule. I STOP fighting, STOP fretting, STOP blaming, and STOP acting out. Now, this takes my cooperation in cooling my emotional jets. My cooperation with God's operation takes me beyond the limitations of human strength. When I STOP, I reach the calm waters of a clear mind. I start to see God doodling again.

Then, I THINK. I put things in perspective. I get back to where I once belonged. After I have exhausted all my best efforts to work things out, I allow God to work it out. Tim Hansel says that life becomes precious and more special to us when we look for the little everyday miracles and get excited about our privileges of simply being human. Emotions are wonderful servants but terrible masters. In challenging times, thinking must lead, then emotions follow. 

Then, I PRAY. One kind of prayer is petitioning. I allow God to work out my current situation and to work in me. PRAYER is mining the resources of God to enable all things to work together for good and everyone's benefit. PRAYER gets me out of the way so God can make a way. Most likely, the answer to our prayer is us.

Finally, I SAY. I confess that God is in control. I SAY that God will meet all my needs, not my greed, according to His riches and glory. I SAY what God says in the Scriptures. I SAY God will make a way, where there seems no way. I SAY to myself, "Ed, you have quit dancing. You gotta keep dancing, or you will become a worm on a hook!"

Read the last verse and chorus of Have You Never Been Mellow? “Now you're not hard to understand, you need someone to take your hand, hey. Have you never been mellow? Have you never tried to find a comfort from inside you? Have you never been happy just to hear your song? Have you never let someone else be strong?” When you can’t see God’s hand, trust in God’s character.  

So, just like you would add S.T.P. to your car's oil, add S.T.P.S. to your life. After all, necessity is the author of change if you "wanna" keep on dancing.