Earthquakes and Dancing

In late August last year, I was in the Prayer Room at the Fredericksburg Prayer Furnace.  During an intercession set one afternoon, we were praying for the new interns who were about to start the fall internship (the same program I did Spring 2011).  I can’t explain why, but I had been carrying these young people in prayer, and whenever I thought of them, I felt a spirit of prayer that made me groan and cry out in intercession.  I didn't even know them, but I knew that something really important was going to happen with that particular group.

So, while we were praying for this incoming intern class, I lay prostrate on the floor, praying fervently.  Others were praying on the microphone.  Then, God whispered to me (in my "mind's ear") to get up and start dancing.

You know how it is: ”Wait, what?  Is this really God?”

As far as I could tell, it was.

“Dance? Really?”

The Spirit was speaking gently, but somehow urgently.

So, finally, I stood up, and walked to the back of the room, where nobody would really notice.  I don't really know how to dance, so I just started stomping around.

And I just kept jumping.  And as others prayed,  I was overwhelmed by feelings both of joy and…well, desperation.  I was filled with great hope for this particular group of young people.  But at the same time, I felt desperate for God’s blessings over them, for all they would experience in their lives.  Perhaps it was a little bit of what God felt for them, of the desire God had to fulfill His plans for them.

So, I was jumping, and shouting, and groaning, and rejoicing...all at the same time.  And we were praying for people we didn't really know.

And then there was an earthquake, and everything started shaking.  The lights rocked back and forth, the musicians stopped, and everyone looked around, wondering what was going on.

And me?  I kept stomping around, dancing awkwardly as the earth rocked back and forth like a rowboat under my feet.

And as the earth shook, my only thought was, “Of course the earth is shaking…all creation is crying out for the sons of God to be revealed (Romans 8:18-21).  And this isn’t the last time it’s going to shake (Haggai 2:6).”

It was a pretty intense experience.  And at 5.8, it was pretty intense for a lot of people.  "It is estimated that approximately one-third of the U.S. population could have felt the quake, more than any earthquake in U.S. history." (Wikipedia, 2011 Virginia Earthquake)

But while it was happening, the only response that felt appropriate was to dance, with hands lifted, and to pray for mercy.

I think that this generation—and in a special way, that group of young people—will see things that nobody in history has ever seen before.  It will be glorious!

Looking back at what happened that afternoon, I'm reminded to continue crying out on behalf of this generation.  Looking forward, to the end of this age, I'm reminded that everything will be shaken, and we will be welcoming Him with a loud cry: “Come, Lord Jesus!” (Rev 22:17)