WHY FLAGS?
Our Heavenly Father is so special and I wanted to rejoice in his favour and grace, to express my humble delight in being permitted to come before Him to worship but the old traditional hymn singing and being quiet and restrained in church just did not allow me that expression of joy.

This sent me on a search around many churches and conferences until I finally found the very thing God was calling me to - a mixture of flags and dance. I say dance but really, it's the flags that do the dancing! In the use of flags I found an expression of joy and thanksgiving that is unparalleled.

I have no background in dance, drama or music and was only introduced to the use of flags at a prophetic worship seminar in 1997. Even then I had difficulty in finding somewhere where I would be allowed to express myself freely. But God is so good. He knows what we need and when that melds with what He wants us to do, the solutions come raining forth like spring showers. Hallelujah!

WHERE TO FLAG?
Consequently, in 1999, I answered God's call to move from my home in Essex (UK) to join a fellowship in Sunderland, Tyne & Wear, where I was able to give free reign to my delight in worshipping with flags and to encourage others in it. As a result, my delight has now become a calling. How wonderful it is to delight in your calling !!

I often feel the sunshine of God's smiles as I make the flags fly in His church. He has granted me inspiration in developing the art and blessings in the strength and endurance to perform it.

GOD’S GRACE
By this I have to explain that I am now 66 years old. Yet every Sunday our amazing God enabled me to dance with agility and energy for the entire time that our brilliant worship team led us in our services. This is usually up-tempo stuff as they were all young people (well, younger than me, anyway!) and in true Pentecostal fashion, can keep a song going for ages !!

I only tell you this in order to explain that everyone is capable of using flags in worship. It is not confined to people with an ‘appropriate’ artistic background, but anyone - people with disabilities, the old, the young - anyone!

FEEL SHY?
If you have reservations and feel that you would be making a spectacle of yourself by doing this, I must tell you that I did also at the start. At first I stood in my place and timidly waved a small flag back and forth no higher than my shoulder. Then I stood at the back and did a few things with a slightly bigger flag. Eventually I found routines and movements that expressed some of the songs with big flags and later - much, much later - I was asked by Pastor Jim to come up front so that people could see the flags better. Being naturally shy and retiring, I was troubled about this until a dear friend reminded me that flags are about Spiritual Warfare and an army isn’t lead from the back!

I had encouragement from reading the biography of Lindell Cooley which reminded me that this wasn’t about me but about glorifying God - they are God’s flags and it is God’s flags that give encouragement to the people.

I also remembered King David.

Here was a man who had a considerably rocky road to the throne that God promised him. He started life as a shepherd boy and was now the mightiest man in the kingdom and yet he would become that shepherd boy again to frolic and dance, to rejoice in the God that he worshipped.

If you want to read my testimony, click here