The Youtube

As promised, a lighthearted blog typed up just for you!! Okay, so this is how it all went down. A few weeks ago, I find myself sitting in my Dance in World Cultures like any other Tuesday or Thursday. By the way, this class is not as exciting as I expected. Anyways, I'm sitting there minding my own business and watching the janky videos of clog dancers from the 90s. All of a sudden, the dancers start doing the jerk like professional gangsters. Yes, they were wearing dorky costumes. No, they did not realize how cool they were being... and to my dismay no gangsta rap took over the lone piano on stage. Despite all that, it was still amazing and entertained most of the class. We were all giggling when all of a sudden he looks up. He looks straight at me and says, "What's so funny?" I hate being the center of attention and I'm not one who thinks super quickly when put on the spot. So, like the eloquent individual that I am I say, "Umm they were jerking." Like I said earlier he is the farthest thing from hip so his reply was, "I know it is jerky. It was hard to film." The kind soul next to me can't just let it go and has to say no that's not what I meant. Let him think that's what I meant! How do you explan the jerk to an old dance teacher? He asks for more explanation and all I can say is, "Uhh they were doing the jerk. You know?"
"You mean their dance movements are jerky?" Thankfully, the girl next to me finally speaks up and explains that it is a dance that young kids do. He then goes on about how he has to get on "the Youtube" more often and maybe then he will know what his students are talking about. We continue on with the video and I get out of class the second he stops talking. Now that I have written all this out I realize it was probably even less exciting when it actually happened haha. I'm glad I could share with you one of my daily interactions with the (old)natives here at State. "You're a jerk!"
"I know. It was hard to film." :D

"You Ain't Nothin but a gold digga" does not apply to God

As finals and the end of pledging are getting closer and closer it does seem as though I may never make it out alive. If I have learned anything this semester though it is, "I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength." I can talk to people I don't know, I can find my classes even if they are in the creepy corner of Peterson Gymnasium, I can be tired without dying, and yes I can get through things that are hard, scary, or just plain unappealing. Through Christ I can also learn more about myself, meet some of my true soul sisters, strengthen my faith, and be humbled more and more each day. One major lesson God has been teaching me this particular week is the importance of spending time with Him (coco how crazy is it that you have been thinking about the same thing???). This is something I always felt like I excelled at. I mean reading your Bible real fast every night before bed is good enough yea? That is definitely an excellent way to start. Why settle for that though? This week I made a valiant effort to not only spend more time at night reading through: Today In The Word (Look into it. I am not joking it will change your bible reading habits) but I also spent just a few minutes when I woke up before the chaos of the day took over. If I say I have a relationship with God shouldn't I at least spend as much time with Him as I spend on my other relationships? God is never a debtor. Sorry Justin Bieber, but this is a say "never" situation. He isn't a gold digger and being in love with Him is pretty cheap since it requires nothing but faith. If I could think of any other pop songs that talk about selfish significant others than I would probably make a joke about those too. Luckily for you I'm all out of ideas. End of tangent. Miraculously, I was more productive and on time this week than I have been the rest of the semester. Don't knock it till you try it. I can guarantee He will bless you more than we can bless Him through this small act. 
I realize that my blogs have been quite serious and important. I'm not going to apologize for that because when it comes down to it, God is the best thing going on in my life right now. However, Becoming An Aztec does come with some crazy antics... so tune in Tuesday for a reenactment of my conversation with my not-so-hip teacher about the "jerk". I think all you bloggees are simply wonderful!! Now my new favorite song by Switchfoot. Even the name is so beautiful it makes me smile. ;)

Let It Shine

So, I have had an idea tumbling around in my head for a few weeks. It is something very important that I have recently discovered. I have tried several times to put it down in words for you bloggees, but it just hasn't felt right. Tonight, I have decided that I will conquer this thought and share it with you. I have been a Christian since the moment I could make up my own mind. Being a "strong willed child" this was rather early. Obviously through the years I have slowly grasped a more complete knowledge of what that truly looks like. However, from the beginning the concept that I accepted Jesus and he forgave me of all my sins was pretty basic. Growing up in a Christian home has been a huge blessing. Like everything though it does have some downfalls. Obedience came pretty naturally to me because it is easy to be obedient when you are constantly reminded not only of your parents love but also His ultimate love, which is a great motivator. Because of this, I really struggle with remembering that I'm not perfect nor will I ever be. I have always known that this was a "flaw" of mine, Recently, God has been giving me a lot of motivation to actually work on that. I think I wrote about this a little in one of my first blogs. No one wants to be friends with someone who thinks they are perfect. That's no fun at all!! He has been humbling me and teaching me what that looks like. Now for the next step! 
With my pride and feeling of perfection came a very judgmental and unforgiving spirit. I couldn't understand why people just didn't do what was right and wise. In my pledge Bible study (one of my favorite times of the week!!!!! love love) we are reading a book called Cast of Characters. If you have never heard of it, seriously look into it. Anyways, one of the chapters talks about the woman who washed Jesus' feet. Simon the pharisee is like, "Psshh he's no prophet! A prostitute is washing his feet and he doesn't even know it." Then Jesus pulls a David Blaine act, reads his mind, and explains to him how very wrong he is. He says: 
Luke 7:47
"For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much; but he who is forgiven little, loves little."
This basically means that unless we understand how much we have been forgiven and how much we are loved, we will never be able to genuinely forgive or love those around us. God is love. He is our perfect example of grace and forgiveness. I can't remember if forgiveness is a real word. Either way, you get my point. This totally blew my mind because in that story I would not be the woman washing His feet. I would be the pharisee. It dawned on me that unless I realize how imperfect I am and how much I need Him, I will never be able to love those around me as I should. The author gave an analogy of trying to write a check from a bank account that has nothing in it. It is so ironic. Only when I understand how imperfect I am can His perfect love shine through me. You all know how much I love to shine. I'm sorry if this blog was a little heavy and serious, I really feel as though this is a concept many of us have never heard. I hope you all take it to heart and shine!

Sunshine!

1,000 hits! Holy cow. When I started this blog I had no idea what I was really getting into. I can't believe that so many of you actually read this. I have continually been praying that God is able to use this to speak his love into your life. He has blessed me so much through this. It is incredible to actually see myself change and grow through this experience. I can honestly say that I know who I want to be and feel confident about the direction I am heading in life. I hope all you lovely bloggees out there get an opportunity like this sometime in your life. 
So... I am taking the time to write during my spring break because tonight my dad told me I was "slack-a-lackin". My response was, "I'm on spring break, nothing exciting has happened." He told me I should write anyways. This is for you dad. 
If you couldn't tell from my last blog, I had reached the point of exhaustion. Motivation and optimism were no longer in my vocabulary. Thankfully this week has put the spring back into my step. Maybe that's why it is called "spring" break! I apologize for the corny joke. I couldn't resist. The highlight to my week has been the glorious sunshine. I'm not lying when I say that I have legitimately prayed for the sun everyday the past month. Thanks God! Today I got to do pilates and I even got sunburned! I have never been so happy to have a sunburn. My massage therapist got sick and the only other available massage therapist was Rico... no thanks! So I went and got some fresh strawberries with the BF instead. I would say it was an equal trade off. After that I played house and went grocery shopping, made cookies, and had dinner on the table by the time everyone was done with work. I would gladly do that everyday if I could somehow make money doing it. Alas, I am stuck at some super awesome university in San Diego learning about something I'm super interested in so that I can get an ideal job... sigh. I guess it is just my lot in life. I will turn the drama off now. 
I hope this blog thrilled your socks right off. I vow to have something way more interesting when I go back to school. For now I will fulfill my promise of "treasuring my foundations" and soak in every minute of this break. 

A joyful heart is like a sunshine of God’s love, the hope of eternal happiness, a burning flame of God…..And if we pray, we will become that sunshine of God’s love-in our own home, the place where we live, and in the world at large.

Mother Teresa

If by the grace of God...

Well, I had another very important first this week. I reserved my very first apartment! I'm still in shock. It is ideal. A cute one bedroom with a kitchen!! A kitchen to fill with teapots and pot holders. My roomie is coco a.k.a. my God send of a pledgee friend. Thanks God. It is right across the street from the ADX house so if we become active(by the grace of God) we will be able to take part in all the fun. If you can't tell, I am pretty excited about it. After we signed the papers I said, "coco what am I doing getting an apartment? I'm still a baby!" If someone told me six months ago that this is where I would be now I would have been scared to death. God has given me so much courage in the past couple of months. I know this is precisely where He wanted me to be. It is a glorious feeling being under His plan and not my own. As far as what I was freaking out about on my last blog... well I'm still kind of freaking out. Everyday I feel more and more secure and safe. I'm starting to believe that He knows best, rather than just knowing it in my head. Sometimes it still sucks though. I'm pretty sure my plan would be a lot more fun every now and then. 
In others news... I learned how to play the spoons in one of my classes. State is kicking some basketball booty. I am developing major Aztec pride. Pledging is hard but really good. This is that point in the semester when you feel like you have been in school(and pledging) forever and the end isn't quite close enough to be motivating. Spring break couldn't be here fast enough. Some rejuvenation is definitely needed. I hope you all find time to rest in God in the midst of all your chaos. Love love love!


Psalm 127:2
 It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives sleep to his beloved.

That "Really God??" Moment

Has He ever asked you to give up something you really don't want to? Don't you hate those moments when you have the opportunity to walk out everything you say you believe in and you find it is harder than you thought? This year God has taken a lot of things out of my life. Relationships have changed, plans have changed, and even dreams have changed. Some of it was easier to let go than others. For the most part though, it was easy for me to trust that He knows better. I trusted that He knew best when I got into State. I learned to trust that He knew best when my car was totaled. I even leaned on Him when life shattering tragedy struck from out of nowhere. Having such confidence in Him is comforting. However, I began to feel prideful as if it was something I had under control. Lean on Him? Check! I so have that one down. Well, you know what they say... Pride comes before a fall. One thing I have been learning while going through the whole pledging process is that I'm not good at not being perfect. I am even good at making my faults sound like a positive thing. Meeting with so many girls and hearing their amazing, crazy stories I realized that being perfect is neither exciting nor endearing. So, I asked to be humbled. Ask and it shall be given to you. At first, the whole humbling process was totally doable for me. It was basically like being blessed so much that you begin to feel like you don't deserve it. So many blessings have been poured out on me in the past month. But now comes the true test... He is asking me to give up something that in reality is already His. I know in my head that I'm not in control. I know that He works for the good of those who love Him. And yet, everything inside me wars against relinquishing my plan. That's where I'm stuck for now, and I'm not sure what else to say. I'm not into the whole sharing every emotion and detail of your life on the internet; therefore, this is all terribly vague. However, I don't want anyone to think I'm doing anything bad or that I'm going to do something insane. So, if you are like me and curiosity runs through your veins just ask and I would be glad to share with you what is going on. If not, then I hope that whoever reads this can relate and finds comfort in knowing that we are all equally as clueless. My ultimate wish is that this blog points all you faithful bloggees directly to Him. 

Guess Who's Back

My faithful bloggees! I am so so so sorry for being so neglectful. I fail as a blogger. My mom just told me that people have been asking why I stopped. If that was you, I love you. You have inspired me!
The past couple of weeks have been absolutely insane and wonderful. My pledge sisters and I are completely inseparable now. God has really blessed our friendship. We all work so well together and the love and support blows my mind every time I am with them. I got a big sis!! I'm so in love. Yet again God had his hand in that one as well. She is such an amazing Godly woman. I survived my midterms. My birthday was last week too. I'm finally 18!! How many times have I dreamt about this day? I have spent countless hours wondering what it would be like to be in college with friends and freedom. It is so much better than I ever imagined. These days I am completely in awe of how blessed I am. Surprisingly, it is so humbling. I guess it is true that when you reach the limit of yourself that is when He steps in and lets everything fall into place. I have never been so tired or busy, but I have also never been so excited. 
I promised you a driving blog and a driving blog you will get. Okay, when I decided that I was going to stay home and be a commuter I was totally dreading the drive. I drove like a granny. I never drove over 70, and cutting through traffic never even crossed my mind. That lasted for about a week. I must say that for the most part, people on the 15 really know how to drive. However, there is also that one that has to go and screw everything. I have a great thing going with Mr. Ford Ranger; we are going fast enough and there is no tailgating or crazy stuff going on. Then Mr. Honda Accord has to squeeze himself in between and ruin the great thing we had. He's tailgating Mr. Ranger and breaking in front of me. That is a drive ruiner right there. I know you all know exactly what I'm talking about too. The 78 is totally a different story. Everyone suddenly forgets how to drive as soon as they get onto the 78. It is ridiculous. However, I must sincerely apologize because I'm pretty sure I used to be that slow driver that messed everything up. I have abandoned my granny ways and have now graduated to a true commuter. 
Once again, I love all you bloggees out there. I solemnly vow to be a better blogger.