abunDANCE

 From the Latin word “abundantia” which means “fullness” or “to overflow”.  The definition is extremely plentiful or over sufficient quantity or supply.  Overflowing fullness. The word ‘abundance’ in Hebrew literally means dripping with fertility!

John 10:10 says The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

AbunDANCE means to have more than enough!

Dance ministers – it is time to start claiming the resources that are rightfully ours.  Stop operating in lack!  Reach up and get what is yours!!  No longer allow “lack” (or perceived lack) to hinder you from fulfilling the vision that God has given you!  I want to share a portion of Bishop Neil Ellis’ personal prayer that I received at the Dancing Preachers Int’l Conference:

I declare and decree that the wealth is no longer stored up for me but that it is being released right now.  I command satan to loose it, spit it out, cough it up and do whatever he has to do to release it.

Now, once it is released….are you ready to receive it?  This takes faith and obedience!  I love the story of Elijah and the widow found in 1 Kings 17. 

The Lord speaks to Elijah: “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you."

Elijah does not ask questions, he moves on faith.  It doesn’t make sense how a poor widow is going to supply for him.  When his natural eyes allow him to evaluate the circumstances he doesn’t waiver, instead he boldly makes his request for food and water.  Not only was this widow poor – she was on her last meal and was preparing for death by starvation.  Elijah instructed the woman to make a small cake for him and afterward use the rest to prepare a meal for herself and her son.  This is what the Lord says:

The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the Lord sends rain on the earth.

That’s abunDANCE!  It was manifested because of obedience on the part of Elijah and the widow.  Dance ministers, the Lord want us to operate in abundance.  Be prepared to move when He says move, and give when He says give.  Remember, if the Lord gives you a vision….he will give you the provision!  It may not make sense to you – in fact, it probably wont — this is where faith takes over!

DANCE in abunDANCE!

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ETS-S World Convention

Title: ETS-S World Convention
Description: http://www.eth-s.org/Events/2009/World_Convention.htm
Start Date: 2009-07-07
End Date: 2009-07-10

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A Minister’s Choreography Devotion: 4th Position

Day 4:  4th Position

The feet are placed the same as in third position with the front foot moved forward.  One arm is rounded, held above and slightly forward of the head, the other arm remains in second position. 

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 In first position, we can meditate on His completeness.  In second position, we remember Him as the Lamb of God, while in 3rd position, we praise our Risen savior.  That brings us to fourth position

Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.
Matthew 14:25

From this one verse, we can reflect on HIM as Almighty, what an awesome demonstration of HIS power!  He is not constrained by elements such as gravity.  Even the winds & the waves obey HIM.  Read the entire section

The fourth watch of the night was between 3am and 6am, I imagine the disciples were disoriented from the sleep and probably on edge to say the least due to the storm.  They did not recognize Jesus coming to them, but when He identified himself it was Peter who asked to be bid to come.

So Jesus bid Peter to come, and he stepped out of the boat.

>>> In fouth position we step forward

There are many lessons that can be gleaned from Peter’s experience that are beyond the scope of this devotion.  A main focus is that Peter DID walk on water while he was focused on Jesus.  As soon as he became distracted by the elements surrounding him and lost sight of who was in control of those elements he began to sink.

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For whatever reason, 4th position is harder to grasp than the previous positions.  Students would lose focus when they step out causing their posture and position to shift.  As we step out into 4th position, remember to focus on your position and relationship with the Almighty!

For more on FOCUS and Peter’s experience, check out Attention Soldier

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A Minister’s Choreography Devotion: 2nd Position

 

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A Minister’s Choreography Devotion: 1st Position

  

 

 

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Starting a Dance Ministry (Part 1 of 3)

One of the seminars I teach is called Starting a Dance Ministry: Prepare Now or Repair Later.  While this article series is not meant to be a replacement for the seminar, it is my prayer that new dance ministries will be able to use this as a resource as they launch into a new area of ministry.

 

 

 

 

 

“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? ? I will show you what he is like who comes to me and hears my words and puts them into practice. ? He is like a man building a house, who dug down deep and laid the foundation on rock. When a flood came, the torrent struck that house but could not shake it, because it was well built. ? But the one who hears my words and does not put them into practice is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. The moment the torrent struck that house, it collapsed and its destruction was complete.” Luke 6:46-49

 

The power of preparation and building on a strong foundation is often not appreciated until the storm comes.   However, it is the preparation and strong foundation that enable us to survive the storm. 

 

How to prepare?

Use AAA (Not the car people!)

Assessment
Take a look at the current situation.  Is there a dance ministry or has there been one in the past?  If so, what happened to it?  How does the leadership feel about dance ministry?  Answering these will help determine how to proceed.

Alignment
Ask yourself “Am I lined up correctly?” , “Am I postured to take a leadership role?”, “Do I have the time necessary to submit to this ministry?”

Attitude
What is your attitude about yourself?  God? Leadership? Your peers?

 

      Prayer
Pray specifically & strategically about the possibility of starting a dance ministry.  Address the 3-As listed above as you seek the Lord for an answer and guidance

“…The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much”
James 5:16b

 

   

      Vision & Purpose

You have to have PURPOSE and a VISION! 
A vision statement isn’t something that is just put in a manual or on a website to sound “catchy” – it keeps you on track, brings about unity, is a catalyst for passion and energy.  Your vision is a” ministry motivator!”

 

 Proverbs 4:25-27: Look straight ahead, and fix your eyes on what lies before you.  Mark out a straight path for your feet; then stick to the path and stay safe.  Don’t get sidetracked.

Proverbs 29:18 Where this is no vision…the people perish

Your vision will keep you on track!  If you are seeking to start a dance ministry within your church, this should align with the vision of your local assembly.  For example, if your church has a strong focus on evangelizing and outreach, then that will probably be the focus of your dance ministry.  Alternately, your pastor may be seeking the dance ministry to assist in setting the atmosphere for the preached word; write that into your vision.  Make sure you internalize and revisit your vision often to stay focused. 
 

Starting a Dance Ministry part 2  addresses practical issues such as advertising the new ministry, sample rehearsal schedules, garments, and fund raising.  Additionally, Starting a Dance Ministry part 3 addresses the necessary administration documents

** If you will like to be notified as soon as information is posted,  subscribe to my RSS feed***

Also, check out Praise Dance Central’s article on starting a dance ministry.  They have covered a wealth of information! 

 

Share your dance ministry start-up story!  Let us hear the good, the bad and the ugly that others may learn.

 

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The Praise Dance of David

This was originally an article published in Paneh’s Newsletter (December 2005).  I’ll be slowly migrating these articles to the website.  Your comments / input is welcomed and appreciated!

Miriam and David

Worship dancers and much more (part 2 of 2) 

In the first article of this series, Miriam: Prophetess and Praise Dance Leader, we explored the life of prophetess Miriam; praise dance leader and sister of Moses.  This time we are going to launch forward in history and examine David.  Most dance ministers are familiar with 2 Sam 6:14: And David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was girded with a linen ephod

This was definitely a high point in David’s life!  He is king of Israel and the Ark is being returned to Jerusalem.  David danced before the Lord as an expression of praise.  Operating in total humility he took the place of the slave at the head of the procession representing his true worship and submission to the Lord.

What can we learn from David?  
- The lessons we can learn from David go beyond the scope of this article, however here are a few points of interest.

1.  Know God’s timing! 
Samuel was sent to anoint David as Saul’s successor as king.  What did David do after he received his anointing?  He continued to operate in his current office (shepherd) and served as Saul’s amour bearer.

1 Samuel 16  
13Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the LORD came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up, and went to Ramah. 
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21And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armour bearer.

We must be careful to operate in God’s timing.  Just because we are anointed to do a work it doesn’t mean that it is our time.  David did not become ‘big-headed’ when he knew he would be king.  He continued to serve where he was presently called.

As time passed, David had to flee from Saul.  At times David was put in the predicament of fighting Saul’s enemies and running from Saul at the same time.  David was even presented the opportunity to kill Saul, yet he refused to be ruled by anger or injustice.  Not only did he not harm Saul under what seemed like optimal conditions, he didn’t allow his men to harm Saul either (see 1 Sam 24-26).  David cut a corner of King Saul’s robe and was convicted to have done that!

He knew God’s promise was that he would inherit the throne of Israel.  He also knew that Saul was in the way of that promise.  But he also knew the blessings of being obedient and it was not his place to touch God’s anointed.    This brings me to my second point:

2. The power of submission 
David confronted Saul after he departed from the cave.  David just spared Saul’s life after being on the run from Saul trying to take his life.  David also knows that he has an anointing on his life to be the next king of Israel.  Despite these conditions David did not confront Saul as if he was better than him or owed him any debt of gratitude, he did not even confront him as an equal.  David bowed down before Saul and recognized him as ruler / king.  Here he puts himself in a vulnerable position, Saul could have easily struck him, after all, he has been chasing him all this time.  But David knew the power of submission and trusted in God to be his protection.

3. David knew how to kill giants! 
We all know the story of David and Goliath.  It’s a popular Sunday school story of how the young boy took out the giant with his sling.  The odds were stacked against David: Goliath was a giant (9 ft tall) and a trained warrior, on the other hand, David was a shepherd that has never been in battle.

What giants are you facing?  Impossible situations, people, haunting memories of the past etc.  Whatever the giant let this popular story inspire you and give you confidence in the battles you face.  Remember, the greater the battle, the more glorious the victory!  To God be all the glory!

4.  There will always be those that despise (hate) your praise 
When the ark was finally returned to Israel we read that David danced before the lord with all his might.  We go on to read that as his wife Michal looked on she saw him dancing and despised him in her heart.  I won’t elaborate anymore on Michal at this time. The point is that we all will have “Michal’s” in our life, but we must not sit down on our praise!
 

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Dance for JOY Workshop

Title: Dance for JOY
Start Time: 9:00
Date: 2009-04-25
End Time: 17:00

DANCE FOR JOY
A Youth Praise Dance Workshop
Ages 5-15

Saturday April 25, 2009
9:00 am – 5:00 pm

Registration
$10 (by April 15^th) for youth
Parents attend for FREE w/youth registration

Registration includes continental breakfast, lunch and access to all workshops!

Topics Include
Dance for JOY parts 1 & 2
Mime
African (tent.)
Step
Sign Language Choreography
Parents / Leaders Track

Purchase your tickets below, or click here for more information

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Paneh’s New Website!

Kingdom Greetings!

If you are a returning visitor to this site, you’ll notice it has undergone some pretty drastic changes. The overall goal was to make the site more user friendly, interactive, and easier to update. A portion of Paneh’s vision statement is use the Internet as a medium of information sharing for dance ministers. Prayerfully, the new design will help accomplish that.

I’ll continue Paneh’s newsletter (subscribe in the top right), however I will also post articles here. Once the articles are posted here, you’ll be able to leave your comments, opinions and questions.

The new design is still a work in progress, so please check back often as I’ll be detailing the different features.

Blessings & Love!
Lakita

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