An organization of Cultural Arts and Development.
"A time to Dance...A Time to Speak"

Sunday, July 25, 2010

Banner Workshop July 2010


I had a wonderful time today at my home church, Primitive Christian Church. Eagle Glorianne Jackson visited my church as a Banner Coach and led our workshop. It was a short workshop but still some people were impacted for the rest of their lives. It is remarkable that so few have had the opportunity to experience the ministry of the banners. I thank God that after years of wanting to know more about flags and banners that God has led me to various teachers. I am truly blessed. I can't wait to see what God will do next at our church with the banners. Pictured above are various banners including the Breath of God, Crown, Jesus, Freedom, healing, Peace and War Cry.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

All We Ask - A Couples Prayer Danced by Martin & Angela Bowman of Seasons of Purpose



I thank God for the opportunity to bless a missionary couple to Haiti 2 weeks ago at my cousin's Gospel Dance concert in Providence Rhode Island. We also had the opportunity to bless our Pastor Marc and Pastor Enid with the same dance the following week. Some changes were made to fit our pastors but they like the missionaries had years of ministering side by side. I thank God for a spouse who is willing to let the creative God blow the breath of life in him so he can let creativity flow through him. When God has us doing that together to bless others...well people just get blessed and we just try to be obedient. As we get ready to celebrate another anniversary, I celebrate the dance with my Lord and the dance with my husband-partner-friend-co-laborer in the ministry.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

God Is Moving Seminar for Leaders--Seminar II

I'm sad that the Seminar is over because we had a wonderful time. The leaders learned the Seminar One pedagogy so we are ready to teach that. We didn't delve into Seminar Two sufficiently but will continue to study and hone this understanding during the year. Many thanks to my fellow leaders JoVeda, Karen, and our trainer Ceu Kingshill. We really learned to enter into praise and worship in the dance in a whole new way. I was able to get past all my years of technique and dance from a deeper place from inside. I think as I get older and these body parts get more mature and range of motion decreases (did I say that subtley?) the depth of my relationship in Christ will increase. So I would like to express that depth in an increased way. I trust God will use us as we are sent forth to teach others to express Christ's love...the high, wide, deep, and even length of His love.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Will you still say yes?

GOD IS MOVING SEMINAR FOR LEADERS
Two weeks ago, I had a great class with my Express Christ God is Moving Seminar for leaders with Ceu Kingshill. I learned a new process to develop choreography. Tonight was one of the most profound experiences I have ever had. As we surrendered areas of our life before the Lord, we listened to the song "Yes" sung by Shekinah Glory. Every time I hear that song I can think of something new to apply to my life. This time we surrendered an area of our life through movement. However the intensity of God moving on our hearts, caused me to not want to get up from the floor to dance at all. I just wanted to lay prostrate and lay my life before the Lord. I thought perhaps I should get up and move, but would that be an honest surrender? Would that be an honest movement? So I stayed near the ground until I was ready. I learned later that some people who do this seminar never come off the floor. The words echoed...
"If I told you what I really need
will your heart and soul say yes
have I told you want I really need, will your spirit still say yes."

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

The Song at Dawn

Birds sing at the top of the lungs. I ought to know, they woke me up before dawn today.
PBS study on THE LIFE OF BIRDS explains it like this:
"By singing at dawn, when their energy reserves are low after the night, male birds may be telling females that they are nevertheless still fit for breeding. A male singing lustily is demonstrating that he has spare energy in abundance. Dawn may be a good time to sing, but there is likely to be a lot of vocal competition. So there are advantages to singing at a different time of day, particularly when two different species have similar songs.

The reason must be a very good one, because making a lot of noise draws attention to a bird and makes it more noticeable to predators.

Bird song has two main functions: to defend a territory and to attract a mate. Male birds do these things, so, throughout the bird world, it is usually the males singing the songs.
Birds can distinguish neighbors from strangers by individual differences in their songs. Males use this information to concentrate their defense efforts. They will not react aggressively against a neighbor as long as he stays on his own territory. But a singing stranger could mean a threat to the territory; a strong response is required to see this potential invader off.

When they are trying to attract females onto their territory, males become operatic. They sing longer and more complex songs. Females listen, but do not generally respond."

This morning the Lord woke me up with music. The music was so mesmerizing that I actually thought a radio was on. I tried to wake my husband to ask him if he had left his Ipod on, but then as I listened more intently, I realized that it was the song of the birds. The choir of birds sang with all their might. Let everything that hath breath praise the Lord. In my spirit I started to worship while I was still lying in my bed but I couldn't sleep because now my spirit was being renewed. I rolled out of bed and went to my prayer closet. If the male bird sings with so much love to its object of affection...can't the Lord sing songs to us in the night with all His might. God has spared nothing to show His love for us. Does He not rejoice over us with singing?

Will you hear the song of the Lord the next time He sings over you? Will you awake your soul and sing. Will you earnestly seek Him early when He calls.

Listen for the song...you will never forget the sound.

Thursday, March 11, 2010

March So Far

March so far has been really amazing. Weather wise, the NY/NJ area has got a reverse thing going on...March is coming in like a lamb...does that mean it will go out like a lion?


My cousin just started the Rhode Island Chapter of the National Liturgical Dance Network. We are so proud of her and I am so blessed to have married my husband who has such a cool 1st cousin!!!! Before the workshop was over, Sister Melodie (that's what folks call her but she's Cousin Melodie to us), prayed over the co-founder of NLDN, Rev. Eyesha Marable.

She truly blessed us over the hours that she spent in Rhode Island. We were filled with the word...warmed up and stretched us out (she was just playing...you've got to come to the NJ workshops to get the real deal anyone at Karade's or Elmwood last spring knows what I'm talking about)!!! Then we learned choreography. How she continues to pour out day in and day out from state to state...well...that's just got to be GOD!!!!

Many thanks Rev. Eyesha, her right hand servant of the Lord Sentheia McLeod, and Rev. Eye's precious daughter Honor. And of course GDPA - God's Providence Dance Assembly led by Sister Melodie Thompson-Thomas that made the workshop possible. GPDA were the helping hands that kept it rolling.

I came back from Rhode Island with a renewed desire to walk in purity and obedience before God. Can't wait for the "Purify" Conference at the Greater Allen Cathedral in Jamaica, NY from July 28-August 1, 2010. Start saving now. Working during the day?...the evening sessions are free and open to the public...but we are happy to receive your love offering. When you come, you will see that each conference is a labor of love.

(Pictured L-R) Sentheia, Rev. Eyesha, Honor, Melodie

Thursday, February 11, 2010

The Week of February 7, 2010


Well what an amazing week. If it wasn't exciting enough having the Primitive Christian Church Super Bowl service switched to Sunday, I saw such a wonderful explosion of praise that day, and people respond to the touch of God on their lives. I had the joy of working with the PCC's Children's Dance Ministry (the Mustard Seeds), and I was giving them that look in this picture that kind of says "we will praise God, but you WILL LOOK AT ME...ahh" The children have such a pure praise, they bless Him with all that is within them.

Then we switched to "The Presence of the Lord" dance. And I really think this move done repeatedly over a week and other physical movements that I don't usually do, took a real toll on my back. This may be the first day my right shoulder blade isn't singing a song. In this shot I am getting ready to "get my blessing right now."










And then by Tuesday night came the snow, and snow, and snow.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Let's Hit the Books

I was blessed with this months On-Line Class...you may recall that I enrolled in the National Liturgical Dance Network's on line (tele-conference call) class.
Our last month (Dec 2009) reading assignment was
The Levitical Calling by Candace Long. We were also asked to pick 1 more book of our choice. Good books on liturgical dance are not easy to come by and they don't remain in print forever so many people opted to get all three. Those books are the following:
The Theology of Dance by Linda Conrey
The Priesthood of the Dance by Kina Nichols
Order My Steps by Gail Glover Faust
We had the great opportunity to listen to and also interact on the phone with the author
Candace Long for our December 27, 2009 class. Looking back on my notes this is one of the things she mentioned...There is a temperament that a dancer has. How should I walk as a creative? We are like a spiritual thermometer (the liturgical dancer), we have like a spiritual antenna built into us. The dancer has a crucial ability to receive spiritual data. The enemy's strategy is to pollute and defile the Levite. Be careful that the door is not open. The dancer has to be particularly careful because we are so sensitive.
If you want to know more of what was said...you have to buy the book or join the class. Please contact Eagle Carmen Curry or Rev. Eyesha Marable of the National Liturgical Dance Network for more information.
For those who have gone through the Eagles Training Institute with Dr. Pamela Hardy or have been in dance ministry much longer than I, have exhaustive libraries. From teaching at Nyack College and my own personal study, here are the books I have specifically geared towards liturgical dance. Some books are really old but bridge the gap that many liturgical dancers are not knowledgeable about...the dance history between the end of the New Testament and the 1960s.
Dancing into the Anointing (see Nyack College syllabus) by Aimee Verduzco Kovacs, Ph.D
The Liturgy as Dance and the Liturgical Dancer by Carolyn Deitering
Introducing Dance in Christian Worship Ronald Gagne, Thomas Kane, Robert VerEecke1984 & 1999 edition
Rejoice: A Biblical Study of the Dance by Debbie Roberts
Dancing in the Spirit by Karen M. Curry
My Body Is the Temple (see Nyack College Syllabus & used as a study at Primitive Christian Church Dance Ministry) by Stephanie Butler
Breathe, Balance and Stretch by Stephanie Butler
Dance![God's Holy Purpose] by Dr. Ann Stevenson haven't read this yet
Rivers of Praise: Worship Through Movement by Rachel L. Moore haven't read this yet either
Happy Reading and let's hit the books and learn all we can to use our gifts for His glory with excellence!!!! And don't forget to mark your calendars for the next Worship and the Word Conference PURIFY! at the Greater Allen Cathedral, Jamaica NY Wed July 28 - Sunday August 1st go to Facebook (National Liturgical Dance Network (and/or) Worship Conference 2010) and get up to date information and get to meet alot of other NLDN members. Get connected dancer!!!!!