God's Will & Line Dancing

When I was in grade school, one common activity in physical education class was line dancing. For those of you who didn’t grow up in rural Texas, line dancing is a “choreographed dance with a repeated sequence of steps in which a group of people dance in one or more lines or rows, all facing the same direction, and executing the steps at the same time.” This was a common occurrence during the Achy Breaky Heart era in American history. I know that it may be hard to believe, but I was not the most coordinated kid on the block. For whatever reason, I always seemed to miss a step at some point. I then spent the remainder of the song awkwardly trying to catch up and get back on the right step. I found that the key to successful line dancing was to never mess up, because one I did it was extremely difficult to get back on track. The chronological order of a line dance was such that each explicit dance move was connected to the previous on in a specific order. Miss one step and all of the following steps become out of sequence causing the whole dance to be wrong.

Many Christians erroneously view God’s will of direction as being similar to a line dance. The assumption is that god has specifically outlined each step in our lives. We must therefore try and figure out what He has ordained and follow that precise plan. For example, three major life changing decisions are what college to attend, what major to choose, and who to marry. The problem with this paradigm occurs when we miss God’s direction for one of these steps. I may mistakenly think I should go to A&M, but God may have planned for me to go to LU. This wrong choice leads me to choose the wrong major. And how can I meet the spouse that God has preordained for me if I am at A&M and she is at LU? The chain reaction continues and I miss God’s direction for my career, kids, location, church membership and so forth. I then spend the rest of my life jumping from one foot to the other trying to get back on the right step.

Fortunately God’s will doesn’t work this way.

God is a God of grace, forgiveness, and second (and third and fourth and fifth and…) chances. He does not have a hidden, mysterious plan that we must blindly follow with no guidance. He does not expect us to walk the tightrope of His will with a blindfold and no net. He does not expect us to wonder through the maze of life in a vain attempt to discover His unknown, particular will. I do believe that God has a game plan for us, missing one step along the way doesn’t necessarily derail the rest of your life. His will of direction is not independent of His sovereign decree. He himself knows our frame. He knows (knew) we will screw up. I am sure that He has accounted for that in His will.

In conclusion, life is not a line dance. If (when) we screw up and, for whatever reason, fall short of the bar concerning God’s will, don’t give up. Repent, and He will forgive you. Set your heart and mind fully on seeking and obeying His will and He will not forsake you.

for His glory,
DJ