Dirty Dancing has to be one of the best movies ever made.  I’m not just saying that because of Patrick Swayze’s good looks and the way he could move.  He was an outstanding actor, and he could also sing!  My husband was surprised to learn that the voice on one of my favorite songs was none other than Patrick Swayze in “She’s Like The Wind.”  This song was in the movie and part of the soundtrack for Dirty Dancing. 

A scene that stands out to me is the one where Johnny lifts Baby out of the water while they are practicing for their big, upcoming performance.  There was such joy on Baby’s face when she stretched out her arms, tilted her head slightly, and pointed her toes as Johnny held her in the air during the lift.  I have seen a similar smile form on the lips of my children as my husband lifted them numerous times over the years in play.

Memories.

I enjoy when the simplest of things sends the memories flooding into my mind.

Just recently when we were playing in the pool, I encouraged my husband to lift my daughter like this once more.  While one daughter, now 19 years old, seems to have lost interest in the pool, our other daughter loves swimming around like a mermaid.  She is approaching 12 years old much too fast for our liking, and so we realize we must seize every single moment we can with her.  We take whatever opportunity we can now to have fun, be silly, and just laugh together!  We are making memories in the process that, we hope, she will hold on tight to for the rest of her life.

Next weekend, we hope to tie the two together.

There is a Dirty Dancing Festival being held in North Carolina at Lake Lure, where the movie was filmed!

There, they will even have a lift in the lake competition!  How fun is that?!  While I doubt my husband and daughter will compete, it will be so much fun just to SEE!

There has been mixed reviews on the festival, but I figure you can’t go wrong with the lake and the mountains as the backdrop.  If, for some reason, the festival doesn’t hold our interest, I’m sure we can find fun nearby!

Summer is winding down, schools will all be back in session, but we don’t want the fun and thrill to end.

And … it doesn’t have to.

We can carry the same feeling of joy in our hearts all year.  Some times you may have to be intentional about it, especially when things come at you in life as they sometimes will.

I can tell you this, though.  You haven’t known true joy until you’ve invited Christ into your life.  No matter what you’re facing, what you’ve gone through in the past, or what you feel like you’ve done that can’t possibly be forgiven.  Christ will replace all of those feelings of worthlessness, if you only turn to Him.  When you ask Jesus into your heart and turn from your sin, He will lift you up out of the pit of despair you’ve been living in.  There will not be any more condemnation, as Christ will forgive you and restore you.  The feelings of worthlessness will be replaced once you realize how worthy you are in Christ.  He died on the cross to forgive you of your sins and give you the gift of eternal life through Him.

Friend, won’t you turn to Him?

Allow Him to lift you up out of the ashes so you can have the joy of the Lord shown on your face!