Return to Me and Sing For Joy.

February 28, 2011

LAST DAY OF FEBRUARAY!!!! I CAN’T BELIEVE IT!!! WHAT IS THIS?!?!?!?!?!!?

This was the first morning I had run in 3 DAYS!

Not to mention, last night, when I came in, I definitely did NOT FALL ASLEEP when my head hit the pillow. Nope. Lucky for me, Deb was COMPLETELY AWAKE! I haven’t laughed so hard in a long time! SO good J. Let’s just say, “dying rooster” sounds. What?! It MUST have been midnight…

So when the alarm went off after 5 hours of sleep, I was surprised to be awake AT ALL!

Even still, Morgs and I were off like a shot! They call us “the Blurr”- you can’t even see the difference between the two of us, we’re so fast! Whoa.

So there we were, Blurring, when BAM, two ZEBRA right in our path! WHAT IS THIS?! They weren’t even in grass. They were standing on the barren, ugly DIRT. Come on, now guys! You deserve better than this!!!

I thought we were going to turn around and do the run of DEATH… which is funny, because in both circumstances, we were going to die. We would either die of RUNNING UP THOSE STUPID HILLS or by being trampled by zebra. Yes, I KNOW they look so cuddly and fun, but in actuality, they are VICIOUS! Vicious, I tell you!

“Morgan, maybe we should do the evil run.”

“But I hate the evil run!”

“Yeah, so do I! But what can we do?!”

“We can take them, Renna.”

“WHAT are you TALKING ABOUT?! Those are wild animals, Morgan! They could DEMOLISH US!”

“Renna, I am NOT going the other way! I hate it! I CAN’T!”

“Ok, but WHAT are we going to DO?!”

“GOOOOOO!!!” Morgan urges as she breaks through the comfort zone between the beasts and the beauties! (Just kidding J)

And so, we went. I guess those two-toned horses thought better of attacking us. I mean, we HAVE been working out.

I, ladies and gentlemen, have DISCOVERED the secret of running!! All you have to do is realize it will NEVER be easy, so you just can’t stop. No matter how fast your heart is beating, how badly your calves hurt, how your side aches, and how your lungs struggle! CARRY ON, through the pain! Since I learned the secret and all, today’s torture run was positive! I am officially on my way to mastering this run. BAM.

For quiet time, I am currently reading through Isaiah. This book is quite complex. It is crammed with prophecies, and many of them are prophecies of woe. That is definitely not the Hallmark card positivity I am craving at this moment in time. I was telling God this, letting Him in on my plan to skip onto another more positive book. However, He was not happy with this idea. FINE! You win, God. I’ll read the woes. Grumble, grumble.

But you know what? The Lord rewarded me. I have found such beautiful, encouraging, vivid verses that sparkle and inspire.

“Remember these things, O Jacob, for you are my servant, O Israel. I have made you, you are my servant. O Israel, I will not forget you. I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you. Sing for JOY, O heavens, for the Lord has done this; should aloud, O earth beneath. Burst into song, you mountains, you forests and all your trees, for the Lord has redeemed Jacob, he displays his glory in Israel.”

I love the imagery. My sins are swept away like morning mist. There is extremely prevalent mist here. It’s thick and dense and overpowering. But my God clears it away to reveal a beautiful sunrise that is bright and warm and gorgeous. I am freed through grace, as I have been redeemed. How could I not sing for joy?! I automatically love any verse with JOY in it, as this is what the Lord is teaching me.

In the verses previous to these, it talks about idolatry. Isaiah speaks of how men chop down trees. They use half to cook their food in the fire, and the other half to build an idol. Where is the logic in that? How could YOU create something to worship, let alone create the idol out of what is currently cooking the chicken? WHERE is the sense in that?

At first, I was chuckling smugly. Who would do this? That is so lame. But then I realized, why am I laughing? Just because I don’t carve my idols out of wood doesn’t mean I don’t have idols. I don’t mean to, but I put things before God all of the time, therefore, I take part in idolatry.

I didn’t know exactly why God wanted me to go shoeless and facebookless this week. But I knew I was supposed to.

Maybe this is why.

Lord, every time I stub my toe on a rock or miss facebook this week, help me to focus on you. Remind me to put you first every moment. God be my protector (shoes) and my obsession (Ahem. Rhymes with shmace shmook).

Today, I think leading worship was positive. I was really trying to focus on the Lord. But it’s a hard transition. I am used to singing for the spotlight or for shows or good causes. But to be completely sacrificial in something I have pretty much dedicated a lot of my life to? It’s a new experience. I am happy to report that I am learning.

I just realized how much I truly love to write. Which is positive considering how much I have composed today. Whew.

The big event of the day? Probably a mall run with MORGAN! Wooooo!! I love this girl so much J. We went on a secret mission to find healthy snacks such as nuts. Well, we did find nuts. They were just covered in chocolate. HOLY HOSANNA they are PHENOMENAL! I am officially kind of obsessed. And by kind of, I mean a LOT.

I also got a giant water bottle. You guys, I am a fish. I cannot drink enough water! I always steal water bottles from class….

…Oh yes, fun fact. Before every single class, the staff sets out cold water bottles and mints on EVERY table! It’s so great! But SOME PEOPLE don’t take their hydration seriously. So I steal their waters. I have a collection in my room. But I felt bad being so anti-environmental. SO today, I bought a water bottle. Wooooo!

No shoes has been hard. And it’s only day one. Last night, I did a test drive, and it was super chill. Today all of a sudden, BAM it HURTS! WHAT IS THIS?! I am noticing different textures, much more than rough or smooth. I am noticing cool or warm, density, etc. I am not quite sure what God wants me to be praying for right now. If you have prayer requests, please email me! I’d love to be praying for you, specifically this week!

Tyler drew me for art today. What do you think?

For ONCE in my life, I haven’t been doing the reading for one of my classes: intercom.

Wow. I have a new name for this class. “Common sense 101.” Or rather, “Common sense for dummies -101.”

Apparently, for service sites, we are supposed to accept gifts, like food or if someone offers me a chair. If you don’t accept it, you’re rude. Interesting.

Yep, today was a long blog. This is what happens when I have no facebook to suck my life away. I get deep and excited about what the Lord is showing me. Whoa. Should have done this a long time ago. But what about the shoes, Lord? If anything, I am becoming more comfortable in myself… I am not a huge fan of my feet. I pretty much ALWAYS wear closed-toed shoes. So now, I kind of HAVE to be ok with them. I am also learning how to be grateful for shoes.

I am definitely obsessed with photography as of today. Hurrah!

Huge day. The end.