The Sacred Dance of Healing

“But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” – James 1:4

There is a profound truth hidden in the simplicity of the Hokey Pokey. What if, in its playful steps, we found a metaphor for life, healing, and transformation? What if this childhood nursery rhyme is an invitation to a spiritual, emotional, and mental journey that mirrors God’s sanctifying work in our lives?

The Hokey Pokey begins with small movements: a foot in, a foot out. It’s not a leap but a step—a deliberate choice to engage with life one part at a time. This mirrors the process of healing and growth. So often, we want instant change. We desire to be freed from trauma, healed from heartbreak, and renewed in our minds immediately. But true transformation takes time. It requires patience, a willingness to move step by step, and the grace to embrace the gradual process of becoming whole.

You put your right foot in and take it out again, testing the waters of trust. Healing from past wounds and traumas requires this kind of tentative movement. It’s a journey of unlearning toxic patterns, opening yourself up to love after heartbreak, and slowly rebuilding what was broken. Each step matters. Each movement—no matter how small—is part of God’s work in restoring your soul.

You put your hands in, reaching toward vulnerability, and pull them back, guarding yourself against pain. This rhythm of in and out reflects our struggle to balance trust and caution. It takes time to stand up for yourself after years of seeking others’ approval. It takes courage to begin loving yourself after years of self-neglect or self-criticism. Yet, every time you reach out, even if you pull back, you are engaging in the sacred dance of healing.

You put your head in, shaking off the lies that have taken root in your mind. The years of hearing “you’re not good enough” or “you’ll never measure up” don’t disappear overnight. Renewing your mind, as Paul exhorts us in Romans 12:2, is a daily act of surrender. It’s replacing toxic thoughts with God’s truth—that you are fearfully and wonderfully made, deeply loved, and inherently valuable.

Finally, you put your whole self in. This is the ultimate act of surrender and trust. To place your entire being in God’s hands, allowing Him to shake loose what no longer serves you and reshape you into His image, is the essence of transformation. But notice how the journey begins with a single step. One foot, one hand, one thought at a time. Healing isn’t instantaneous, but neither is it stagnant. It’s a process that requires grace—grace for the journey, grace for your missteps, and grace for the time it takes.

This is what it means to give yourself grace. Healing from childhood traumas, unlearning bad habits, and breaking free from people-pleasing tendencies all take time. Learning to love yourself after years of self-abuse or shame doesn’t happen overnight. Opening your heart to love again after the pain of betrayal is a slow and tender process. Each step, however small, is a victory in itself.

When you turn yourself around, as the Hokey Pokey teaches, you experience what it’s all about. Transformation is not just about reaching a destination; it’s about engaging with the process. It’s about the small, faithful steps that lead to a profound turning point. And that turning point, in spiritual terms, is repentance—a complete change of mind and heart. It’s choosing to let God turn your life around, trusting that He knows the way even when you don’t.

The Hokey Pokey reminds us that life, healing, and faith are all a dance. Each movement—tentative, bold, or somewhere in between—is an act of courage. The shaking, the turning, the stepping in and out, all reflect the ebb and flow of our walk with God. And in the end, when you’ve put your whole self in and allowed God to turn you around, you’ll find that this is, indeed, what it’s all about.

-Jermy Arnold