Notes of Faith May 28, 2023
Dancing Pallbearers
You’ve probably seen the viral videos featuring what is often called the Coffin Dance. A troupe of Ghanaian pallbearers, dressed in elaborate suits and wearing sunglasses, walk down the street, balancing a coffin on their shoulders and performing impressive dance moves to loud, upbeat music. And of course, since the internet is what it is, those videos spawned countless memes and compilation videos featuring the dancing pallbearers from Ghana.
What is it about this custom that caught the world by surprise? Perhaps it’s the juxtaposition of death and joy. That’s the reaction I had when I first saw it. Who dances with a coffin on their shoulders? For that matter, dancing of any kind seems out of place at a funeral. Or does it? When I saw those pallbearers boldly celebrating life in the face of death, it felt right. It was honoring, powerful, even victorious.
According to BBC Africa, Benjamin Aidoo, the young man who started this troupe of dancing pallbearers, sees choreography as a way to honor the wishes of families who are paying their respects to a loved one.1 Funerals are an important part of Ghanaian culture, and a funeral dance adds a unique flair to the occasion. One woman who was interviewed said this about the pallbearers: “These people, when they are taking your beloved to their final resting place, they also dance, so I decided to give my mother a dancing trip to her maker.”
Joy always laughs better, longer, and louder than death.
A “dancing trip to her maker.” What an awesome way to put it! It’s sad, for sure, because mourning a death is not an easy thing to walk through. But her decision to say goodbye to her loved one by organizing a dance party reveals a lot about her inner victory in the face of death.
It’s interesting that the Coffin Dance went viral during the COVID-19 pandemic. It was almost as if we were reminding ourselves (in a weird, dark kind of way) that death doesn’t get the last laugh. Joy does.
Joy always laughs better, longer, and louder than death.
Joy Comes in the Morning
Even though pallbearers in our culture are generally more solemn (and less coordinated) than the Coffin Dance guys, I’ve still seen joy at many funerals. Actually at most funerals. Even in pain and sorrow, it is common to hear friends and family express joy. Often, when they get up to speak at the funeral, they laugh-cry-laugh their way through their words. When everyone meets up for the reception after the funeral, there are both tears and laughter as people remember the good times they had with the deceased.
Why is there joy? Because of the life the person led. The people they influenced. The family they raised. The friends they made. The memories they created. The love they shared. The sacrifices they made. The generosity they embodied. The legacy they left behind. The peace they now have in Heaven.
David wrote in Psalm 30:5,
Weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning.
Paul said something similar, which I referenced in the last chapter:
For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. — 2 Corinthians 4:17
Both David and Paul were able to look past the pain of the moment and see that something better was ahead.
Obviously, joy is not the first emotion you feel when death strikes. In the early aftermath of a loss, the pain is real, the hurt plunges deep, and the sorrow can feel all-consuming. Yes, weeping stays for the night — and often it’s a long, dark night indeed.
All nights come to an end, though. Even the longest, darkest, saddest nights. In due time the sun comes up, the light chases the darkness away, and hope rises again. When you are weeping in the night, it’s important to remember that morning is coming and joy is on its way.
Joy always gets the last laugh.
Of course, you can’t force joy to appear any more than you can force the sun to rise. Solomon wrote that there is
a time to weep and a time to laugh, a time to mourn and a time to dance. — Ecclesiastes 3:4
In other words, timing matters. Seasons come and go. Right now you might be weeping, and that’s okay — but take heart, you won’t weep forever. Today you could be mourning, but you’ll be dancing soon enough. Hopefully with the same level of style as our Ghanaian brothers.
You don’t need to force joy, but you should expect it. And when it comes, welcome it. Rest in it. Heal in it. Find strength in it.
Joy Gets the Last Laugh
Joy has a way of restoring your soul. There’s a story in the Bible about a time of mourning that Israel was experiencing over their failures and sins. Their grief was real and it had its place, but God didn’t want them to stay there forever. Nehemiah, their leader, told them,
Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. — Nehemiah 8:10
He wasn’t shutting down their sorrow in some dismissive, toxic way. Rather, he was telling them that it was time to let their grief turn into joy. They needed to put their past mistakes and losses behind them and turn toward the future God had for them.
I love that phrase, “the joy of the Lord is your strength.” Joy has a unique capacity to bring us internal strength. I don’t mean fake, superficial joy but the kind of joy that comes from God. A joy that validates your weaknesses, losses, pain, or sorrow but also looks beyond them and sees the presence and power and peace of God.
Like dancing with coffins, finding joy in sorrow can seem like an odd juxtaposition. But there is power in that joy. There is freedom and triumph in being able to acknowledge death without being consumed by it.
This joy doesn’t ignore your circumstances, but it does exist beyond them. That means you can be sorrowful and joyful at the same time. You can mourn your loss while still holding on to the peace and joy of the Lord. It’s not one or the other but both at the same time.
Excerpted from The Art of Overcoming by Tim Timberlake, copyright Tim Timberlake.
This grief and joy experience can only be true of those who have faith in God their Savior Jesus Christ. They are the ones who leave this life into the eternal presence of Jesus. Those who do not have faith in Jesus will experience life after death, but it will be one of judgment for their unbelief and they will be tormented in pain and anguish for their unbelief. We must pray for our friends and family who do not believe in Jesus and His death and resurrection to provide for our offer of salvation and forgiveness of sin against God. Only if they come to Him can we have joy and grief at their passing from this life. Let our love for them keep us praying fervently that they be drawn to the truth of the gospel that they might be saved and experience eternal joy themselves!
Pastor Dale