This picture has little to do with this post, but it does show people dancing. Yay, Ibiza pictures.

"DANCE. "

"Come again?"

"Are you guys representing Christ on campus? Because if you are dancing like that is wrong. It's your sin crucifying Christ again. I've been watching you and as a Christian, I felt I needed to tell you that. You cannot be a light in this place and do that.... "

I'll spare you the rest of the conversation in exchange for a little bit of context. It's Welcome Week at American University- aka our busiest week of the year. The campus ministry that I work for is out and about welcoming students to their new home and trying to bless them through free stuff and fun times. Every year, the university throws a big outdoor party called Quad After Dark, complete with inflatables, a dj, food, prizes, and so on.

While working our table at the event, some of the student leaders and staff of our ministry thought it would be fun to attempt to start a dance party. After all, there was a dj and absolutely no one dancing. To keep the story short, we did attempt, but it didn't catch on. [There is an embarrassing video somewhere.]  We joined a later cohort that tried again to start a dance party, but alas that fizzled out too.

Later in the night, the dj started playing some hip hop and a small crowd started dancing. At this point, we decided that the dance party wasn't our thing. The dancing was a little too inappropriate and we were too tired. At this point, one of our student leaders took a step back from the group and jokingly "got low" when "Low" came on.

And, then the lovely man running one of the inflatables approached us and kindly offered his opinions of our behaviour. At which point, we began a lovely discussion that lasted only a few minutes, but has taught me much. After having reflected on it, here are the things I will remember about our brief encounter.

• Jesus save me from your followers still applies. Part of the reason Jesus isn't appealing to our generation is the fact that His followers like to be judgmental rather than loving. Granted we've all been there, but at the end of the day, the notion that people like Jesus, but not His Church still applies... and it is a reality that we must consider and overcome.
• Christians need to remember that Jesus is no longer on the cross.  My sins, even if dancing is included (but you should already know my thoughts on this one), will not re-crucify Him. He was already crucified, and He does not hang there in bloody agony longer because I sin today. He has already paid the price, and the joy of the Gospel is not only the atonement, but also the resurrection. Jesus is alive; He reigns. The hope is knowing that this broken life and this broken world are being restored because Jesus is alive, active, and returning again.
• I think that hope is worth dancing and celebration. Jesus would have danced. I truly believe that. God created dance and music, and He desires to restore it to a place of worship. God can be encountered in "secular" music and in clubs and wherever we look for Him. I think Jesus would have smiled at our attempts to start a dance party.
• Coming in an opposite spirit does not mean retreating and isolating yourself in a Christian bubble. The inflatable dude and I had something in common, and if he wouldn't have sent me a little defensive by attacking the character of one of our student leaders, we may have had a deeper discussion regarding this. At the end of the day, neither of us like obscene lyrics. Part of his argument was that Jesus doesn't approve of the song or inappropriate dancing. I agree that the lyrics are horrible; in fact, I said that two minutes before he confronted us. My approach is that horrible lyrics mean amplifying the prayer and the worship. His approach is that horrible lyrics necessitate evacuating the premise. I also agree that grinding is not the way to dance, but rather than not dance, I believe that we can dance as worship. I can see his argument, but I can't see how it advances the Kingdom. I understand not supporting obscene music- I have very rarely invested money directly into purchasing songs or buying tickets for artists that are extremely crude. I understand not feeding the demand, but I don't understand how it is wrong to call out the good and to show a different Spirit filled approach to the celebration.
• Hypocrisy is dangerous, and so are assumptions. The guy was lecturing us while working for the company that employed the dj. So it's not okay to dance at a free event because of the music, but it is okay to make a living by exposing people to that sort of entertainment?  Furthermore, he assumed that intentions of someone he didn't know. The moral is that asking questions is way better than confronting someone with assumptions. A simple question "why are you dancing?" would have been a lot more conversation provoking than a correction. 

A final thought, I think it is important for me to mention and to admit that I personally could have handled the conversation a little better. In retrospect, I think I would have done a better job simply saying that I thought there was a bit of a misunderstanding and moving onward. I should have thanked him for his concern, briefly shared why I didn't think dancing was a problem when he asked, reiterated that I loved Jesus, and just moved on with a blessing and a smile.

Overall, I am grateful the conversation. And, grateful that I serve a creative God that loves music and dancing and fun. My prayer is that God will continue to push me outside of my comfort zone- in ways like starting a dance party- to help invite others into the celebration of knowing the hope of Christ.