Joyful Dancing

You have turned my mourning into joyful dancing.You have taken away my clothes of mourning and clothed me with joy, that I might sing praises to you and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give you thanks forever (Psalm 30:11–12, NLT)!

If a piece of music has only loud, high notes, it is not beautiful. What makes music beautiful is the juxtaposition of high notes and low; of soft, quiet notes and strong, forte ones; of melody and harmony. To appreciate one, you must have the other. Variations in tone and volume and tempo make music that is beautiful or interesting. The music of our lives becomes flat when we take away the counterpoint.

So often, I find myself praying for Jesus to simply fix things, to take away any aches and pains in my life—be they physical, spiritual, emotional. I want life to be one long, high note.

But what kind of music is that? One of the strangest paradoxes of the Christian life is this: Jesus can change our circumstances, but sometimes, He does not. However, He always changes our perspective. He enables us to see the beauty, even in the midst of pain. That is how He turns our mourning into dancing. Our joy is sweeter and more satisfying because we have mourned. Jesus doesn’t prevent our mourning but transforms it, in His perfect timing.

We set aside mourning and start dancing because of the fact that Jesus is in our lives—not because He’s taken away the pain, but because He is right there in the midst of it with us. That presence in the midst of pain is what it means to be clothed with joy.

FAITH STEP: What are you mourning right now? Write it down in a journal. Feel free to fully grieve whatever you need to grieve. Ask Jesus to meet you in the midst of that pain, so that He can transform it, in His timing, into joy.

 
Written by Keri Wyatt Kent