My friend, Julie, and I were working out the other day. I mentioned how it had been around five days since I’d last showered. We both acknowledged that that really wasn’t all that different than when we were at home. Awesome, right? 🙂
I remembered this one week right before I left for the Race…it looked something like this:
I had taken a shower on Saturday before a Christmas party…
Sunday morning, I got up for church, but my hair still looked presentable, so…no shower.
Monday morning, I thought about showering, but said: “You know, I’m just gonna be in the car all day traveling….I won’t worry about it”
I got home, felt a little gross, but thought, “well, I have to go play a couple volleyball games tonight, I’ll just get sweaty again…”
Came home from my games, sweat already dry, considered a shower, but thought “You know, I’m just gonna get sweaty again when I meet my friend for a run tomorrow, so I’ll just wait til after that…”
We made plans to run the following day, so honestly…I thought about not showering again…because I mean…well…you see the pattern.
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve used this rationale on the Race. Even more so this month, since it requires filling a bucket full of water, standing over a drain in a room outside, while I take a cup and pour it over myself…freezing between the pour-overs.
So as I pondered this upcoming shower…and this question of whether or not it was worth it…I felt like the Lord wanted to teach me something…
Because it turns out this rationale is one that I haven’t only used for weighing out whether or not to take a shower. It’s one I’ve used in life.
It’s the one I used for waiting to serve the Lord. I would look out at the path ahead of me, and if there was something ‘fun’ that I didn’t think I could serve the Lord while doing, I would wait.
It was the reason I would hesitate to confess certain sins I was afraid I would do again…whether confessing to God or my friends…because what if I messed up again?
It’s been my reason for hesitating on stepping into certain spiritual disciplines…ones that my spirit craves and that promise renewal…but I look down the road, and fear that I’ll fail at them…so I put off starting them.
So, is it worth it?
Is it worth plunging into the things that promise renewal and refreshment and life even if the human part of me may fall short again?
Regardless of what the next day holds…regardless of how long I think I can keep this fresh look up…I think maybe, just maybe, it’s worth going to Him for whatever manner of renewal He has that day.
I mean, just because I’ll get dirty or sweaty or sandy again doesn’t mean I’m never to take a shower.
In closing, all I’d like to say is: just freakin take a shower…you’ll feel better…you may get dirty again…but you don’t just get one shower…
His mercies are new EVERY morning… 🙂
