Sometimes we just need to stop. Breathe. Pause. Say, ‘God I
need you right now’, ‘please send more of your spirit’, ‘wrap your arms around
me’.
Our new Soak events are designed to provide just that. An opportunity in the month to enter into Gods presence.
Although we all try daily to walk with Jesus beside us, there are always moments where life takes us down a different path, and we get to the end of a day, week, month and realise, those moments that we struggled through, were exactly the moments when God wanted to step into the breach for us.
My heart for the Soak events is a time to actively make the decision to draw deeper with Jesus and dwell in his presence. In 2 Timothy it talks about the need to nourish and support our faith, and it’s the Holy Spirit within us that can help us do that.
We can’t give out, if we are running ourselves on empty,
taking the time to fill us up should be a priority.
What will happen at Soak events?
We’ll spend a short time welcoming each other and doing a warm up movement activity together. As well as reading through some scriptures to focus on during the session.
This will lead into an initial time of free worship, after
which there will then be a creative reflection exercise for people to part take
in if they wish, leading back into free worship.
There will be the opportunity to take part in some prayer movement if people wish, this will be led and guided by the event leader, depending on peoples strengths.
The rest of the evening we’ll see where the Holy Spirit takes us!
You can see our current dates for Soak Nights here.
Do I need to have had
dance experience?
Absolutely not! Part of dancing and moving in your faith is
the recognition that movements are tiny and big, so whatever you do, a foot
tap, or hand raise, is still a movement.
Want to know more and be kept up to date with other events at UC Grace? Head here to sign up.
Last week, as I sat and looked through the coming events
with UC Grace and where they sat in the wider calendar, I suddenly realised
that Lent was just a week away. It got me thinking about how Lent is approached
in the wider world, and how much emphasis people place on it.
Many people strive to give up things, or try to focus on
something specific, but how many actually use those 40 days to draw closer to
God, to deepen their relationship with him, learn something new about
themselves and God? Probably not as many as we’d think.
Then my thinking all got a bit radical, and I thought, why
don’t we dance through Lent??
Lent is set aside as a time of reflection, prayer, and preparation.
What better way to prepare ourselves than to move the bodies God has given us
in surrender when words don’t suffice.
In him we live and move and have our being… Acts 17.28
This is one of my favourite verses, the essence of dance
summed up in 10 words! Tim Hughes song, God of Justice emphasises it very well too,
with the phrase ‘move us into action, we must go.’ God moves us into action,
fills our hearts and initiates our movements.
So, the idea has grown, to 6 week resource, to encourage us
all to step out in some form of movement each day. My heart is that those who
are both inexperienced and experienced can access it, with different options
for people to dip into depending on their time and circumstance.
The Layout
Each day there is a bible reference and a themed word assigned
to it, the word is there to help you prompt other feelings as you do the study.
Over the course of the 6 weeks we are going to look at 4
areas, the Psalms – 2 weeks, Armour of God – 1 week, God’s Truths -2 weeks, and
of course the Easter story.
How will it work?
Each Wednesday the next weeks study will come out. When completing
the study, there are two levels. If you’re short on time, concentrate on the
first 3 questions, these can be done in 10-15 minutes. If you’ve got more time
and want to go deeper, do the next set of 3 questions which will also take
10-15 minutes. So, if you decide to do both it can be around a 30 minute movement
time!
How much movement
will I do?
That is really up to you, the studies are designed so that
you can put as much action into them as you want, or if you just want to
isolate a single word and do a single action you can do that too.
Do I need to have
danced or moved before?
No, this study can provide a great way to introduce you to
movement. There is no right or wrong way to move, if you are putting Jesus at
the centre of your movement. My encouragement would be to start simple, by
thinking of movements connected to words in the literal sense.
What if I don’t
understand what to do?
Drop me a message! Ask in the Facebook group! There is a UC
Grace worship chatter group where the main ‘talk’ of the series will be
happening. This is so other platforms aren’t constantly bombarded with what’s
going on.
This sounds awesome!
How do I sign up?
Already on my email list? Drop me a message here which says ‘count me in’.
Not on my email list? Then head here …. and I can make sure you get all the information you need.
Last night I had the privilege of being invited to be part
of the Candlemas service at St Micahel’s, Aldershot, it was such a lovely
evening, I left buzzing and I want to share some of what God spoke to me during
the service.
I had been asked if I could find some dancers who could
respond as the felt led to a piece of live piano music based on Psalm 121: I Life
my eyes up, to the Mountain. The lovely Helen Warren joined me as a second
dancer, and our prayer before we danced was that we would reflect some of Jesus’
heart, that people would be drawn in with a desire to explore God more through
our movement.
Recently I recognised that I spend a lot of time teaching
and delivering, and not so much time dancing for myself. Last night gave me the
opportunity to come before God and thank him that I have the ability to move,
but also reinforced that for UC Grace to grow, and share Gods heart, I need to
make sure I am giving God mine, and that in turn requires time set aside for me
to dance, and be lost in his love through movement.
As the service progressed, Alwyn, the Vicar asked if we
would dance again later in the service. By this point me and Helen felt we had ‘warmed
up’, laid the foundations of showing Jesus through movement. So, as Jesus
Christ, I think upon your sacrifice played, our hearts were stirred more by the
spirit and we loved sharing more of that through dance and movement.
Much of the journey I have been on over the past week has
encompassed the desire to draw back to the centre of what and why I do what I
do with UC Grace. There were several things that God drew my attention to last
night, it made me chuckle as the theme seemed to be everywhere I went at the
moment.
In my previous post I mentioned about the interaction between creativity and the heart, and that my desire when I started had always been that it was about the hearts impacted not the numbers. You can read more about it here. It is this theme of people’s hearts and prayer that keep cropping up.
This prayer below reminded me that God places me where I
need to be and with who I need to be, and I need to be willing to serve Him in
what ever way that looks like.
It’s really hard in reality isn’t it to keep that sense of doing what God wants and following his will. This chorus of ‘I the Lord of sea and sky’ (brilliant song, you can listen to here), sums it up very well.
I will hold your
people in my heart. The people that God puts in front of me at events, in
conversations and through dancing. Each one is important.
We did manage to video some of what we did last night. Not
everything is in full view. But it will give you a flavour from our first
dance.
What special services have you danced in? Let me know.
Keep up to date with the latest with UC Grace, by joining our mailing list here.
The word creativity has been on my mind a lot recently, it’s taken me right back to why I started UC Grace, and how Living Colour dance workshops came about. I’ve been reading through previous notes and realising that at times it’s important to go back to your roots.
The ultimate reason I began UC Grace in 2010 was a passion to share with others the impact that dance and movement can have with our faith, and how it can be instrumental in encouraging others in their walk, bringing others to faith, and teaching Gods word. I wanted to acknowledge that God has given us a creative spirit, to explore, move and grow with. To put ourselves outside the box.
But as with so many things in life, distractions arise and
before you know it, where you think you were, you no longer are.
A dear friend gave me a card with the saying ‘Creativity takes Courage’. Initially I
read it and put it to one side. Until last week, when I was drawn back to it,
and the need to understand the implications of what that phrase means to me and
to UC Grace.
Creativity has been a fundamental part of how UC Grace has
developed, it’s integral to how we deliver our workshops, training and dance
weekends and is actively encouraged amongst participants to help them draw
closer to God.
However, I’ve felt challenged, that this fundamental root,
the thing that shines through our work and sets it apart from others, has wilted.
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve delivered all events with the same amount of gusto and
passion, but had a feeling like something was missing, but not knowing what.
As this year has got underway, the Holy Spirit has whispered
in me more, and I’ve realised its creativity
that’s missing. Or more specifically how I share the connection of dance and
movement and our faith, by offering a creative channel within which to do it.
Let me share for a moment what I mean by creativity with dance and movement and our faith!
An aspect that we look at a lot, is our journey, how we’ve got there, and where we might be going to. At one particular Living Colour session I asked participants to take a piece of paper and think about the journey that they had been on over the last week, and if they drew it, what would it look like? I then asked them at what points on that journey did they know that God was with them, and to mark it on the paper. From there their task was to transpose that picture into movement working individually initially, but then as a group. You can read more about how they did it, by reading the workshop plan here. But for now, look at the video below to see how they went from a picture to movement.
So why does it take courage? It takes courage, because for a lot of people creativity is something they don’t experience in their day to day. It’s something that doesn’t have a written step by step process, or tick boxes. It’s something that draws us to discover something new about ourselves, by stepping out the box.
The process is as important as the result is, both of which you might not have control over. Creativity takes courage, as it challenges your perceptions, your routine and your mindset. At UC Grace, that discovery happens in a safe environment, where whatever the result is, we support you as best as we can. Most importantly though, you join in as much or as little as you want.
It’s never been about the numbers that come to events. It’s about the hearts. I believe that if you join us at our events, God has put you there for a reason, and I value that. The connection between creativity and people’s hearts is so important.
Over the next month or so, I am looking forward to continuing to weave this strand, across the whole of UC Grace, some of what is on our website currently is not where UC Grace is now. As God moves each of us on in our journey, God also moves UC Grace, and I’m looking forward to delving into putting creativity right back at our heart, as well as revisiting our values and vision.
We started with that phrase in 2010, let’s head back their in 2019 and see where it takes us.
I’d love to know your thoughts and experiences, if you have danced and moved with UC Grace. But also, those that haven’t, how do you use creativity? What does it mean to you?
So here is a simple workshop plan. Sometimes my plans are
written out in detail, others are not as I know that there needed to be a lot
of space to let God move and see where the session was going to take us. So
below is an example of a ‘light’ plan. When I delivered this session, it was
one of my busiest for a while, so it was lovely to see how each person developed
their individual movement style.
Let me know how you get on!
Pray – always begin
with prayer, welcome God into the space you are in.
Read all of Romans 8 – what are your initial thoughts?
Focus on the following areas for discussion –
Verses 1 – 4
Verse 14 – children of God
Verses 37 to the end.
Creative Task – Life through
the spirit
What has you week looked like? Where has the spirit been in
it?
Take a piece of paper and draw or sketch your journey. Think
about peaks and troughs and how you travelled from one space to another.
Get Moving
Individually –
identify ways that you can put movements together to demonstrate your journey.
Share with others if you comfortable.
With Others –
Link your journeys together. Do this by first all doing your own journey at the
same time. Then identify points at which your journey can intersect with
someone else’s. Finally, how different does the journey look if you add some
one in?
You should 3 variations now. Your own with others, your own
that intersects with others and finally your own with someone else in the
journey at some point too.
Share with others your finished dance. Use it as a time of
blessing, both to give, but also to receive.
Throughout history flags and ribbons have been used in many significant ways – declaration and proclamation, worship, battle and celebration. Flags have become increasingly popular in churches to demonstrate freedom of expression and encourage other people to experience and try out dance and moving with their faith. Today I want to share 4 good things to know about worship flags in the Bible.
Know this before you start
Flags and banners themselves have no power. The significance
is in Scripture and what they symbolize, God ‘inhabits the praises of His
people’ and brings the kingdom in when we choose to take them up in faith.
However, I feel strongly, that flags and banners should not be picked up lightly. There is a lot more power in them, than people realise. They are a vehicle to talk to God, to communicate, worship and share your heart. Be aware of this, as you choose to move with them.
Let’s try and understand them a bit more…
How are worship flags used in the Bible?
Historically in the Bible there were 4 different ways worship flags and banners were used. Let’s look at an overview.
Israel’s banner of God being with them demonstrated how they were a people who belonged to God. They housed the Ark of the Covenant, with them morning and evening. It was a symbol of God saying I am with you, just like we have the Holy Spirit.
Each tribe had one rallying point for the fighting men of the tribes. This brought together a demonstration of military and fighting force. They could look to the horizon and know the banner they needed to get back to.
The next level was tribal unit identity. There were 3 tribes on each side NESW, so they knew exactly where they belonged – their identity.
Finally there were family clan units – these were based on the location of other banners, families always knew where to camp. The banners acted as reference points, therefore giving individuals purpose and vision.
What can banners do?
Tell people who you represent, bit like a signal pole always high on a hill.
Signal of intent about what is to come – Jeremiah 51.12
Indicate past victories they’d come through – different ribbons are attached to their pole under their banner depending on the battle won. Psalm 20.5 and 7
Indication of Gods presence – Moses and Aaron’s staff are banners that have been lifted and a response occurred. Exodus – 25
Put enemies to flight. Isaiah 31.9
Remember this going forward about worship flags in the Bible.
This is very quick overview of the use of worship flags in the Bible. But hopefully offers you a small insight into what the Bible says, and areas to think about when you choose to dance with flags.
I like to remember it as a visual demonstration of a spiritual truth. Just like moving normally, you never know the impact moving with flags and banners can have on you and others who may witness it. The colour you use can create just as much impact.
Finally, want to come and try using resources during your worship? Then get in touch with me here to chat about me coming to your church, where you can try out ways of moving with flags, ribbons and material. No prior experience necessary!
You can also head to Shop where there is a selection of flags, ribbons and streamers that you can purchase to get you going.
Want to keep up with UC Grace journey? We’d love to keep you in the loop. Head here to get your name down!
