There are very few things in life that genuinely touch my heart like seeing a daddy dancing with his daughter!! The first time as a small girl, then fast forward to the grand finale on her wedding day!! (Aaaawwww!!!!!)
When our family moved here to Wentzville in January of 2008, the first thing my husband asked me to do was sign him up to take Grace (then 6 years old) to the city dance! The next year, Sophie was old enough to join them. Since then, it has always been a sweet occasion to let our little princesses get all dolled up to go dancing with their daddy!! He recognizes how important that relationship is and the necessity to be a godly example in their lives. I thank God for that! Every day we should model our lives after Christ, but it is a very special thing when a father shows his daughter how a man after God’s own heart should love and respect her. She then learns what to expect from a future suitor!
For a few years, we continued the tradition of the attending the city dance, but something was missing. Ed said, “You need to do this at church! You should offer a dance that focuses on Christ and use it as a way to draw people to the Lord!! Use it as an outreach!” At that time, I was part of the Koinonia Ministry Team, and it seemed like a perfect way for the homeschool ministry to reach out to our community!!
This dance is absolutely about loving God and loving people!! It is a vehicle intended to draw folks who wouldn’t otherwise come to church and welcome them in!! Please invite and encourage others to come!! This is not an event for homeschoolers only!! The goal here is to invite people from our community to hear about the love of Christ!! We use the dance as a means to that end. 1 Corinthians 16:13: “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.”
The evening goes like this:
Dads arrive with their daughters all dressed up and beautiful!! They check in and then head to the Fellowship Hall. There they take a formal picture, and enjoy a little fellowship before dinner. When mostly everyone has arrived, the men pray and everyone eats together!! After dinner, the DJ invites everyone to the sanctuary where there will be a time of devotion. At that time, a male speaker (who is a little further ahead in his parenting walk than the dads that are attendees) speak about the importance of a relationship with Jesus, being a Godly father, and raising their children in the Lord. 
Topics also touch on the importance of the father/daughter relationship and how to model the way a godly man should treat her. Past speakers include: Larry Knox, Prentice Robertson, and Mark Scott. We have been blessed by their wisdom, encouragement, and love of God!! At the same time, and without their knowledge, the moms are feverishly transforming the Fellowship Hall from Dining Hall to Ballroom!! When the devotion has ended, they direct everyone back to the Fellowship Hall for dessert, photo booth fun, and dancing!! Psalm 150:4 reminds us to “Praise Him with tambourine and dance; praise Him with flute and strings!” Ecclesiastes 3:4 says that there is a, “time to weep and a time to laugh; a time to mourn and a time to dance!” And so…they dance! It is a wonderful evening! All year long, girls and dads come up to me and tell me of the great time they had together and how they can’t wait until next year’s dance! Moms tell me of their girls coming home and gushing over dancing with their daddy!! They also go home and talk about the topic of the devotion and how to be more intentional in raising children who love the Lord!!
We typically fill the Fellowship Hall to capacity!! It would be awesome to run the dance two nights in a row with a good mix of believers and new people! So, next February, when you see ads for the dance in your bulletin, tell everyone you know!! This year marks the 9th year that Ed took our girls to a dance—the girls are 15 and 11 years old!! I cannot tell you how precious their memories of these dances are! The dance entertained a good mix of the really young and teens alike—it was so special to watch those “big” girls dance with their daddy! Honestly though, I don’t know if more tears were shed by the girls or the dads themselves!! Proverbs 14:26: “In the fear of the Lord one has strong confidence and his children have a refuge.”