World Dance Day

^{Courtesy of cid-unesco.org.}

International Dance Day (World Dance Day) has been celebrated on April 29 through promotion by the International Dance Council (CID).

The holiday was introduced in 1982 by the International Dance Committee of the UNESCO International Theatre Institute.

Among the goals of the Dance Day are to increase the awareness of the importance of dance among the general public, as well as to persuade governments all over the world to provide a proper place for dance in all systems of education, from primary to higher.

According to the CID, this year's Dance Day is dedicated to the children.

The CID believes that caring for children is the cornerstone of human progress. Our primary goal is to overcome the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease and discrimination place in a child’s path. Thus we advance the cause of humanity.

Dance is a basic component of personal and societal development. We recommend quality basic education in dance for all children with an emphasis on gender equality and eliminating disparities of all kinds.

No child should be left without the opportunity to learn and to practice dance. Access to the art constitutes a right for every person and children in particular. This right should be protected, in order to help meet their basic needs and reach their full potential.

Have a wonderful day full of dance!
Dance for the children.


"Then maidens will dance and be glad, young men and old as well. I will turn their mourning into gladness; I will give them comfort and joy instead of sorrow."
^{Jeremiah 31:13}

"David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might..."
^{2 Samuel 6:13-15}

"They send forth their children as a flock; their little ones dance about. They sing to the music of tambourine and harp; they make merry to the sound of the flute."
^{Job 21:11-12}

"I will build you up again and you will be rebuilt, O Virgin Israel. Again you will take up your tambourines and go out to dance with the joyful."
^{Jeremiah 31:3-5}

"[There is] a time to weep and a time to laugh,
a time to mourn and a time to dance."
^{Ecclesiastes 3:4}

2008 is the year of Jubilee!
Celebrate!

"I Need You" - The Swift

My heart is restless in me

My wings are all worn out

I'm walking in the wilderness

And I cannot get out

I need You, Oh, I need You

Blessed Savior come

I need You, Oh, I need You

Fill the every longing in my soul

Oh, how I need You, Lord

I need Your perfect Word

With tearful eyes to see

The sin that I afford

I need to weep and pray

For all the thousand ways

That I have failed You just today

My bed is soaked with sadness

My sadness has no end

A downward spiral of despair

That I keep falling in

I need You, Oh, I need You

To You my soul shall fly

I need You, Oh, I need You

Yaweh, how I love You more than life

Oh, how I need You, Lord
I need Your perfect Word
With tearful eyes to see
The sin that I afford
I need to weep and pray
For all the thousand ways
That I have failed You just today

Your silence is like death to me

So won't You hear my desperate plea?

Today my soul is soaring

Way over mountains high

Though I can see the valleys

They're all just passing by

It's not that I am stronger

[Look at my feeble wings]

But I've been lifted higher

Yaweh's lifted me in His own strength

Oh, how I love You, Lord

I love Your perfect Word

With tearful eyes to see

The God who always will endure

Now I will celebrate

For all the thousand ways

That You have shown me grace

And made my heart in grace to stay

You've made my heart in grace to stay

Lord, make my heart in grace to stay

I need You, Oh, I need You...

________

_{If I could only sing one song for the rest of my life...}
^{I need You, Lord, I need You...}

In the [Mist] of This.

How lovely and nimble are thy feet,
- O prince's daughter!
They flash and sparkle and can run more fleet
- Than running water.
On all the mountains there is no gazelle,
- No roe or hind,
Can overtake thee nor can leap as well~
- But lag behind.

Thy joints and thighs are like a supple band
- On which are met
Fair jewels which a cunning Master hand
- Hath fitly set.
In all the palace, search where'er you please,
- In every place.
There's none that walks with such queenly ease,
- Nor with such grace.

-(Cant. 7:1)

________
_{[Hannah Hurnard]}

The Greatest Quest

"Love never fails."
-1 Corinthians 13:8

What is the number one goal in your life? What is your dream?

Maybe you want to build a successful business. Or be a teacher. Or join the Armed Forces. Or maybe you're called into the ministry. Those are great goals, but something even more important should be "your aim, your great quest" [1 Corinthians 14:1, AMP].

What is it? Living a life led by and filled with God's love.

Human love is changeable and unpredictable. On the other hand, God's love, which is the kind of love you and I should walk in, is entirely different. It doesn't act one way today and another way tomorrow. It doesn't let circumstances or emotions alter it. It is sure and consistent.

[First Corinthians 13:4-8] tells us precisely what its characteristics are. This passage of Scripture sets a very high standard for love--so high that you might be tempted to think it's beyond your reach, but it's not. In fact, if you're a Christian, it's natural for you. It's in your heart. You may not be letting it out, but it's there. When you made Jesus your Lord, God put His love inside you [Romans 5:5].

Without time with God and His Word, however, you'll naturally pull towards selfishness. We all have a natural mind that has been trained to believe things like, "You have to look out for yourself...and stick up for your own rights." Plus, Satan continually tries to draw us out of love, because he wants to steal the answers to our prayers.

The bottom line: Love is the foundation for your new life. When you walk in love, you put yourself in a place where God Himself can protect you--and then nothing can stand against you [Romans 8:31-34]. Love is the key to God's wisdom, power, and protection. No wonder the Word says, "Make it your aim, your great quest!"

Backup: [1 Corinthians 13:4-8]
"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever!"


"I eagerly desire and follow the way of love. I make it my aim and my great quest in life."


-*-*-

_{All the above is from the February 14 devotional from "Load Up" by Gloria Copeland. [emphasis added]}

Have You Ever...

started to cry because something was so beautiful?

sung something you just made up on the spot, and when you try to go back and remember the words you realize that song was made for those moments only?

sat still in silence?

heard the silence?

been scared by it? Not because of something ominous. But because you felt so vulnerable?

wondered why?

put pen to paper before you thought about what you were going to write...and something beautiful came out of it?

dared to stare Holiness in the face?

slept peacefully and deeply without a care in the world?

tried to snap a shutter on a lovely scene, then put the camera aside realizing some views are made for the moment?

seen a stranger and felt compassion for them? Not pity. Compassion?

wanted to hug someone you barely know, but stopped because you were afraid of so many things?

wished you could just get that homeless guy on the the street all he would ever need?

stared out the window in awe of the things around you?

thought you could change the world?

lived in the moment?

Have you ever...?

Happy New Year

2008
A year of new beginnings.


_{Don't stop dreaming.}

Warning

This blog is likely to be bold, outright, and direct.
Perhaps you would call it fanatical at some points.

We would like to warn the viewers that discretion is advised.
For those who are faint of heart, please go to another website.
For those prone to guilty conscience, this will not help.
For those without an open mind, a softer reading would probably be preferred.

Basically, this stuff is for real.
No sugar-coated, day-to-day, superficial stuff.
This is life.
Out loud.

And it's a life dedicated to the God of the Universe.
Maybe you know Him by Yahweh, Adonai, El Shaddai, Shekinah Glory...
Or maybe just Lord.

This is about the things He has done in a teenage girl's life.
And in the lives of those around her.
They may not seem to astounding to you at times, but they have Eternal Significance.

She's got a purpose, and she's living it out.

So here's just a fair warning:
She's on fire for Him...

and it's contagious.