Went to church, got "wooshed" with a flag!

I'm a worship leader at a non denomination church with... shall we say... charismatic leanings. We're not weird. Nor "holy rollers."

But we do believe in living a Spirit filled, Spirit led life by prayer and the Word. We ascribe to the things Paul writes about in 1 Corinthians 12, 13 and 14.

In the past, we've encouraged people to worship the Lord in Spirit and in Truth, urging them to express their hearts to the Lord as we sing.

Dancing and flag waving has become a part of that expression for some. And distraction to others. Some want the leadership to let the people worship freely. Dance is found as a form of worship in the Bible.

Other in the congregation want it restricted. They feel they cannot invite outsiders because the guest won't understand the flag waving and dancing. It's too unusual. Different.

We've noticed guests arriving and leaving early. If they stay, many don't return.

So the leadership has been debating this topic for months now, even talking with the pastor of another church who has a large dance ministry. He has the same struggle.

Now I grew up with this stuff. The pastor's wife at our church in Tallahassee was a dance major at Florida State. She was a beautiful dancer and trained those in the congregation how to dance before the Lord. There was structure and order to the dancing.

Flag waving? Not a big deal. We do it a ball games, right? Scripture is full of the singers going out behind the banners. AKA, flags.

When the Lord sent me to Israel in '93, I was on a dance and intercession team. And I'm not a dancer...

Yet I can see how it's a distraction. Our sanctuary is boxy, and not built for a lot of movement.

Maybe to the outside eye, flag waving and dancing seems like an awkward expression. In my church now, we don't have a dance ministry leader, so there's less organization and structure.

All in all, those who express themselves in dance and flag waving do it well.

Recently the leadership talked to the dancers and flag wavers about moving to the back of the sanctuary during worship.

Being in the back means more people feel liberty to move about... And some are not always aware of their movements.

Sunday we had a couple of visitors. Like most first timers, they sat in the back. When worship started, the flags started. In the back.

And somewhere along the line, those visitors got "wooshed" with a flag. Not once, but twice. It's unclear if they were hit with the flag stick, or if just the flag itself wafted over their heads, but either way, they were gone. Skedaddle. Out of there.

One of the pastors tried to catch them, but they were too quick. The whole incident seems to have been a combination of things.

The flag waver not being aware. The observers not moving quick enough to remind the flag waver to pay attention.

The guest probably felt uncomfortable and not bold enough to tell the flag waver to be careful. I mean, would you? If you were in a new church?

I've been in some kind of ministry for 22 years. Before that, I watched ministry from my parents point-of-view.

It is never, ever easy to be in ministry. Some people want more liberty and more room for the Holy Spirit to move. Others want more structure, more organization.

I've heard debates over polar opposite issues like pre trib and post. Healing is deliverance from sickness to going home to heaven being the ultimate healing. Do we have to tithe ten percent? Wasn't that the Old Testament?

Leading a church is not easy. I don't envy our pastors. Because every one in the congregation comes to the house with their own paradigm, their own experience, and even yes, their own fears and wounds.

Pray for your pastors. Ask the Holy Spirit to teach and enlighten them. Don't pray what you want, or what some other guy wants, pray what Jesus wants. He is the perfect leader.

To the couple who got "wooshed," I pray you find the right church home where you can grow in the love and knowledge of God. Grace and peace. I'm sorry you got "wooshed" today but we are imperfect and still working it out.

What about you? Are their church traditions or expression that you like? That make you uncomfortable? Is it valid? Is it culture?

Tour De Force by Elizabeth White

Please welcome my friend and fab author, Elizabeth White!

TOUR DE FORCE: A Love Story releasing May 2009, Zondervan

A Passion for Dance

Gilly Kincade is a rising star on the New York ballet scene. Dancing is her life's passion, second only to her love for Jesus, and she believes her faith sets her apart--but hasn't held her back. Chosen for a plum role in a new ballet choreographed for her, it seems the sky's the limit. Then she meets Jacob Ferrar. . .

A Passion for God

Jacob Ferrar has left behind the glittering temptations of stardom in New York ballet. He has established a reputation as a brilliant, innovative artistic director of a regional dance company in Alabama, with a vision for choreography that glorifies God and encourages the audience. In fact, he's certain nothing could make him go back. . .

Becomes Love's Tour de Force

When Jacob offers Gilly the lead in his original Easter ballet, she begins to reevaluate what she's willing to sacrifice for dance. And he sees exciting potential of shining light on the world's dark stage. But their brilliant first performance is destroyed by a terrible accident, and Gilly and Jacob find themselves facing an uncertain future. Together, they dance the fine line between personal vision and God's will, listening for the beat of the Father's heart.

Romantic Times BookClub says:

"White takes readers behind the scenes into the competitive dance world. It's refreshing that Gillian befriends and respects people living different lifestyles while still boldly living out her faith.” (4 stars)

Elizabeth White invites readers to meet her on the Web.

An interview with Beth about Tour de Force:

Q: What inspired you to write a novel about ballet dancers?

A: Too much cold medicine? JUST KIDDING! Actually, Gillian Kincade was a character in last year's Off the Record.. As the off-beat teenage sister of Judge Laurel Kincade, Gilly took on such a distinct personality (as characters often do) that she demanded a story of her own. Readers have written to ask if she follows through with her crush on musical heartthrob Tucker McGaughan. . .To be blunt, no. Too easy. But rest assured, Tucker makes his appearance in Tour de Force.

Q: So were you ever a dancer yourself?

A: If you could see the bruises on my knees just from trying to make it across the Wendy's parking lot, you wouldn't ask that question. But since you did. . .I once took tap, jazz and rudimentary ballet as a child. I learned just enough to pick up elements of the dance language. Everything I know about professional ballet has come from interviewing and observing real dancers, notably the exquisite Kathryn Morgan of New York City Ballet and Kathy Thibodeaux of Ballet Magnificat! in Jackson, Mississippi.

Q: What spiritual take-away is involved in a story about dancers?

A: I was interested in exploring challenges to Christian artists in general. The Scripture I kept coming back to is Luke 12:48: "From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked."

Debates have gone one for decades (probably centuries, for all I know) regarding Christian art. For example, C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien, the story goes, discussed whether the world needs more "Christian writers" or "writers who are Christian." The only way I knew how to tackle the subject was to create characters who must face those questions, take a stand, and either live for God -- or not.

It's my belief that flawed people are more interesting than perfect ones. They're also more real. Though Gilly and Jacob aren't "real" in the obvious sense, they do struggle to cope with universal issues. How much overt "witnessing" should a Christian performer or teacher do? What's the line of grace between acceptance (tolerance) of the lifestyle choices of non-believing friends and sticking up for morality and truth? How should we respond when God seems to pull the rug out from under our dreams and desires? Are Christians allowed to feel disappointed?

My job as a novelist is not to preach the answers to those questions, but to draw pictures of possibilities and to point readers back to God’s Word -- the only place to find answers. If I succeed in making readers think and pray, then I'm happy.

Q: This book has a subtitle, "A Love Story." Is there significance to that?

A: Well, I've always considered myself a romance writer, but this one is truly focused on the development of relationships -- not just between the hero and heroine. Tour de Force explores friendship, family love, and God's love. It was a very satisfying book to write. I hope readers will like it.