A Calling to Givenness
"Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms." -1 Peter 4:10
Serve. As the Ad Deum community, we frequently reflect on this word. Though our profession requires hours in front of a mirror, as a family of believers who dance, we acknowledge that we must not get lost in our reflection. If we are to live in the fullness of our calling, we must look out--truly see others around us--and commit ourselves to using our gifts for others: to strengthen, encourage, and lavish others in the Lord’s peace and love. Every day spent in the Ad Deum community is a reminder of the beauty of “givenness:” of being created as a beautiful gift to be given to others, and in return, seeing others as treasured gifts in our own lives.
As our ability to recognize others as gifts grows, we grow in our ability to live lives of reverence for the beauty and glory the Lord has entrusted to His people. When we dance, we cannot help but look out and truly see others, and in our seeing, give to others. Our directors frequently remind us to be generous dancers—to not just do the choreography, but to rise to the greater calling given to us. We are here to not just move our bodies, but to move hearts and usher people further along their journey in the fullness the Lord has for their lives. With every movement, we are encouraged to dance as vessels of hope and healing. We were never given these gifts to keep for ourselves. Dance is the towel with which we wash the feet of others. It is our tool of service—our medium through which we deliver love, light, and truth to others. “Come alive!” our bodies sing, “there is so much more for you! Life, freedom, comfort…come to the fountain and drink. Our Lord does not deprive His children, He loves you and wants you to live freely in that love.”
The Body of Christ is called to unity, and it is from this conviction that this summer tour was birthed. Dancers know well that a fractured body is less powerful than one that is committed to harmony. Dance requires that every member of the body works together in unison. We learn to begin from our core and from there, allow our limbs to experience freedom in movement. As believer artists, we must return to our core together—return to a heart of worship so that the many hands and feet can serve others wholeheartedly in our spheres of influence.
We were all made to be glory-bearers. In scripture we read of priests who carried the ark of the covenant on their shoulders as they carried the Lord’s presence from place to place. As artists, we too, with hearts attentive to the Lord’s instruction, and hearts eager to obey, are called to bear the Lord’s glory upon our shoulders. When we asked the Lord, “where would you like us to carry you?” it became clear that His heart is set on unifying His Body and filling it with His anointing to rise up as children of Light and bring His love to the lost. It is crucial that the Body of Christ live unfractured. We must pool our resources and gifts together in order to build each other up in the vision the Lord has sung over our lives. This summer, we will be going to Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Conneticut, and Washington DC to encourage, serve, and collaborate with emerging dance companies called to dance and ministry. Our desire is to serve and empower others in their calling so that as a unified Body of Christ, we can usher in healing and hope.
