“ For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs- heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ…..”
Romans 8: 14-17
It’s praise and worship night in Costa Rica. Day three? Lemme just say these people know how to get their worship on. They have graciously allowed me to join in with their worship team, so I’m manning the keyboard in the back. It’s a bilingual service, but a lot of the songs are Spanish songs I’ve never heard before. So I’m pretty much keepin’ it on the down low, throwin’ in a few chords every once in a while… swingin’ and swayin’…. ya feel me?
My eyes were closed for a few minutes, but then I look up to see several people so full of joy they’re dancing in praise. Probably one of the most beautiful expressions of worship I’ve ever seen. Everything stopped and I just stared, mesmerized. It wasn’t an attention seeking ploy. It wasn’t for self-gratification. It was a total abandonment of self for the glory of God. It occurred to me that these people were expressing the freedom they had found in Christ in a tangible way.
A few days later I was sitting in the Pastor’s office telling him my story (he wants to get to know each of us). I’m rambling on and he interrupts to ask insightful questions. All of a sudden he stops, “God wants you to know this. You don’t have to be strong all the time. When you’re weak He can be strong. You need to learn how to be a daughter. He wants you to be a small girl again.”
Gotta love those Spirit-filled people. Tears slowly started to fall as I realized I totally had no idea how to do that. I excused myself and went to have some quiet time with God. I asked Him how to be His daughter. I asked Him to show me. I remembered how when I was a little girl, I would twirl around for hours on end. I decided to put in my earphones and give it a whirl. The words from Natalie Grant’s “Alive” washed over me and I felt something deep inside spring forth. It was like the every fiber of my being was bursting with praise. Every move I made was telling the story of redemption and life anew. All of a sudden I felt like a small girl twirling around for her Daddy to see. After all, I’m His daughter first.
