Thursday, June 16, 2016

{The Dance}

I've been thinking about marriage a lot the past couple of days.  A friend from church is getting married next month, and her wedding shower is this Friday. Also, my 17th wedding anniversary is approaching in a couple weeks.

I've been reflecting on my relationship with my husband and how much we've both changed over the years. Thinking back to our early years of marriage, we used to do so much together before we had kids. One of the most memorable activities was ballroom dancing.

When TJ and I signed up for those lessons, we had no idea what we were getting into. Neither of us had ever done anything like it, and the only experience we had was watching dancers on television. Those classes were much more challenging than we anticipated!

Marriage is a lot like a dance. The male leads and the female follows. It's not a passive following, but rather very intentional. If I try to take the lead, we both end up frustrated and out of sync. However, if I follow willingly and lovingly, even when he missteps, we remain in sync and are better able to recover together.

Another way that marriage is like a dance is that it requires a lot of hard work and dedication. Neither of us are naturally great dancers, but by the end of our six-week session, we were able to mesh together to create a beautiful piece. But, it wasn't only because of our hard work; rather, we had an instructor who was willing to teach, correct, and encourage us along the way. God is the ultimate Instructor and He does all of those things in our lives on a daily basis.

I had to learn to trust TJ enough to lead me in the right direction. Sometimes he messed up, but the times that I was encouraging and not critical of him, the quicker he learned from his mistakes and the more willing he was to continue to try. The same can be said for him regarding my mistakes. I know I stepped on his toes a lot, and it was usually because I wasn't following his lead.

Life has often been compared to a tapestry. We see only the tangled mess of threads and knots. However, God sees the big picture and knows just what we need and when in order to create a beautiful picture. Dance is similar- two imperfect, non-rhythmic people come together to create a beautiful expression of their love and adoration for one another. In practice, there is nothing worth watching! However, by show time, the costumes are on and the dance is executed flawlessly. It is a beautiful picture of Jesus taking our mess and turning it into a message of hope, grace, and never ending love!

Grow in grace,
Terra


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