Sally Clarkson - Dancing with My Father: How God Leads Us Into a Life of Grace and Joy

Praise for
Dancing with My Father

In Dancing with My Father, we learn along with Sally Clarkson how to experience peace and joy through all the challenges life has to offer. The scripture offered and questions asked at the end of each chapter make this a wonderful book for individual or group study.

B RENDA N ULAND, homeschooling mom and blogger, found at http://coffeeteabooksandme.blogspot.com

Sally Clarksons warmth and wisdom remind us to quit worrying about our footwork, lean into Gods embrace, and let Him lead in this joy-filled dance called life!

L ISA H ARPER, popular speaker and author of A Perfect Mess

Ever long for a gentle, godly mentor? One who with words and by example, graciously guides you through the maze of life, encouraging you to see with your heart, hear with your soul, and ultimately discover God in the midst of it all? You hold in your hands a mentoring manual creatively crafted by Sally Clarkson. This treasure will enable you to confidently rise above the circumstances of your life, unearthing contentment and calm as you too learn to delightfully dance with your heavenly Father.

K AREN E HMAN, national speaker for Proverbs 31 Ministries and author of A Life That Says Welcome and The Complete Guide to Getting and Staying Organized

With grace, candor, and engaging true-life stories, Sally Clarkson helps readers rediscover the reality of enduring joy in a fallen world. This is a book well worth reading!

C HERI F ULLER, speaker and author of Mother-Daughter Duet

This is not another dont worry, be happy book. Sally gets to the heart of what true joy looks like and how to hold on to it through all circumstances of life. I highly recommend this bookand Sally Clarkson!

G INGER K OLBABA, former editor of Todays Christian Woman magazine, founding editor of Kyria.com, and author of the novel Desperate Pastors Wives

A breath of fresh air for weary travelers on the ministry road. With characteristic grace and wisdom, Sally Clarkson acknowledges that even the most devoted Christian suffers discouragement, disappointment, and disillusionment. She meets us in our crashed idealism and burnoutbut she doesnt leave us there. With God at her side, she leads us to the gentle peace and quiet trust of a mature Christian. Ive read all of Sallys books; this work is her best yet!

E LIZABETH F OSS, mother of nine and author of Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home

These pages sing a song that could change your life. In lyrical prose that truly captivates, in the rhythm of personal narrative and startling truth, Dancing with My Father invites the soul-hungry, the joy-lame, and the spirit-weary to come to the soiree and stay. This isnt another paint-by-number, formulaic book, but an honest, thoughtful invitation to live an authentic life of biblical joy.

A NN V OSKAMP , columnist for ChristianWomenOnline.net and the San Antonio Christian Beacon, and a blogger, found at www.aholyexperience.com

As you turn these pages, your precious Father God will twirl you into a dance of joy with Him!

L INDA D ILLOW, author of Calm My Anxious Heart and coauthor of Intimate Issues

I dedicate this to my wonderful father,
John Bone, my first dance partner.
Thanks for modeling a life of joy.

10.

Monday morning was here again. I opened my eyes reluctantly, since snuggling under my warm covers on this snowy, Colorado spring day seemed more desirable than facing the responsibilities that shouted for my attention. Marriage. Parenting. Church. Work. Extended family. Friends. Everyone and everything seemed to need me, constantly wanting more and more of my time and attention, leaving little for me and my passions and interests.

After twenty-eight years of marriage and twenty-five years of parenting, I was accustomed to these burdens that sometimes weighed heavily on my shoulders. As I lay in bed, I compiled a mental list of what was ahead of me in my day. Making breakfast for two of my children who were still at home; finishing the dishes from last nights dinner party; attacking the piles of laundry that had accumulated over the last busy week; facing the deadline on a freelance project that still wasnt finished; helping my daughter with her history report; discussing with my husband how to deal with our sons college bills and the need to replace the tires on our older car

On and on the list grew until I wanted to pull the covers over my head and stay in bed. I was already weary of the work ahead, and the day had not even begun!

In the midst of this, my fourteen-year-old daughter came into my bedroom with tears in her eyes. Mom, do you remember my friend from church whos been battling a brain tumor?

Yes, I told her. I remembered him well. My daughter and I had prayed often for his healing.

I just got an e-mail that he died this morning. I dont get it. We prayed so hard!

I know, I said, hugging her to me.

I just feel so empty.

We talked and prayed, and I was struck again by thoughts that had captivated my attention for almost a year. With so much sadness and so many daily burdens to shoulder, how do Christian women maneuver steadily through this journey of life with joy and peace of heart intact? What does it look like to be a woman filled with joy, every day, all the time, no matter what? In the deluge of all the stresses and disappointments in a fallen world, how does a mature Christian woman really walk in the power of the Holy Spirit? How does she face each situation with gladness, despite the relentless and demanding day-after-day, month-after-month, year-after-year things that would rob her of emotional and creative energy, such as chores, bills, arguments, messes? Or how does she maintain joy in the center of more devastating troubles: a divorce, the tragic death of a loved one, a child who has a chronic illness or disability, rejection by family members, alcoholism and drug-related scars, a job layoff?

For me, the times I struggle most to experience joy are when I feel an invisible finger pointing at my heart, accusing me of all my inadequacies: How can you be a Christian this long and still lose your temper or struggle with pettiness, entertain critical attitudes, fluctuate in your emotions and in your walk with the Lord? Guilt over disappointing God or others sometimes lurks in the recesses of my mind and hovers silently like a cloud over my subconscious soul. After all, I have been a Christian for many years and am perceived as a mature leader, writer, and speaker; shouldnt I be able to conquer these obstacles with confidence and strength? Shouldnt joy be as natural to me as breathing?

My daughter went back to her room to get ready for school. Slowly I got out of bed and moved to the kitchen to brew some tea. As I looked out the kitchen window, I thought back to a similar spring morning, almost exactly one year before, when I first began to wrestle with this issue. That particular April morning found me sitting on a park bench outside the old city gates of Krakow, Poland, my last stop on a mission trip. Many years before when I was a young missionary, Krakow was where I grew into my idealism about life and faith. This was the place where I began to live passionately for the Lord, where I determined to walk each day with my hand in his.