A TIME TO MOURN AND A TIME TO DANCE

  
   Given a rich heritage is a great advantage to a person's life. As I expressed in the book, "Digging a Well," this was something God freely bestowed upon my life. There is much said in the book about my heritage from my Granny Creekmore but there is also much to be said about my MawMaw Poss.

   One of the great things I learned from my Appalachian heritage on my mother's side of the family  is there is a season for everything. A time to be born and a time to die, a time to plant and a time to pluck up, a time to mourn and a time to dance. God created us and made us to have all these events and emotions and it is very important we learn the different season's he placed within our lives. There is no doubt we will experience the negative seasons but it is up to us to instill the positive ones into our family's lives. 

   In my earlier years when we would go to my MawMaw Poss.'s house, there was a lot of work involved. Learning how to shell peas, churn milk to separate the butter, wash clothes and hang them on the line, feed the cows and chickens, cook, sew and the list goes on.

   One of the things I learned at my MawMaw Poss's house was to kick your shoes off and have a good old time. My grandmother loved to sing, listen to the guitar and dance.The highlight, to me, of the evenings together was under the trees in her front yard where my uncles pulled out their guitars and sang and watch MawMaw laugh and dance. 

   As my children were growing up it was very important to me to instill into their lives the word of God. Much of my time was spent teaching them character but it was also very important to me that they learn well the different season's of events.When we were at home we spent much of our time laughing and dancing. This is something that I am hoping was as much of a memory for them as it was for me. There are many that feel this behavior is inappropriate. I must disagree. The scripture states plainly in Ecclesiastes that there is a time to dance. We didn't go to the dance hall and we didn't do inappropriate dances but I guarantee you, we did some dancing. Those memories have a way of carrying us through the rough times in our lives.   

   In the scripture David said he danced before the Lord.  Do you think it's accidental the word of God has this written in it?  The many things David did that were sinful, the scriptures tell us. I do not see anywhere the Lord scolding David for dancing before him in worship.  This was nothing close to a fleshly dance.  This dance was in praise to his maker, the mighty God.  

   If you are not able to break loose and dance at some point in your life, you are skipping over one of the seasons of life. Now I didn't say I was promoting going out and dancing in public.  I am saying this time you spend with your husband, wife, children and your God can be times that can bring great joy and also a soothing balm to the soul. 

   To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven: A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted; A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up; A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance; A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away; A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak; A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace. What profit hath he that worketh in that wherein he laboureth? I have seen the travail, which God hath given to the sons of men to be exercised in it. He hath made every thing beautiful in his time: also he hath set the world in their heart, so that no man can find out the work that God maketh from the beginning to the end. (Ecclesiastes 3:4)