Day 1: Cold Showers and Sore Muscles

Today was Day 1 of my Moccasin walk challenge. Just a reminder of what I'm doing:

- No cell phone--at all
- No iPods or CDs
- No TV, movies, or video games
- Sleep on the floor with no pillow
- No fast food
- Eat only one or two meals a day
- No snacks
- No superfluous (unnecessary) purchases
- No driving
- Only cold showers
- Wash clothes and dishes by hand
- Give money normally spend on good and entertainment as offering
- Give half your paycheck to humanitarian aid, Perpetual Education Fund, etc.

I started off my challenge today by fasting. I honestly don't think I can do it without the Lord's help. Already I'm having withdrawals from my phone. I took my first cold shower today and I have to say...it sucked. My muscles have been sore all day long, because the cold water made them tense up. It was always extremely hard to wash out the shampoo and conditioner from my hair which made it even harder to blow dry it. I also had to walk to church with my sore muscles in the cold wind which made them tense even more. I had two people offer me a ride and as much as I wanted to accept it, I had to turn them down. My Sunday school class had cupcakes today. I told them I was fasting so I'll just eat mine later...then I realized I can't have any snacks. I plan on weighing myself at the end of this week to see if I lose any weight...not that I need to, but it will be an interesting test. I just set out my bed for the week. Looks comfortable enough, but I'm planning on a sore neck in the morning since I can't use a pillow. Let's just add some more pain to my muscles.

Okay, now enough complaining. I know that those are ridiculous things to be complaining about and I know my week is going to be harder than that, but here's what went well in my day. I was able to go through my fast without any temptations and I had all the strength I needed. This is the first time I have fasted and not felt hungry. I am also already feeling grateful for warm showers. I was sure grateful to be done with my cold shower this morning. I almost think no showering would be a lot better. I also played a piano solo in sacrament meeting today. The solo was "Jesus Once of Humble Birth". I made very few mistakes and felt very good about my performance. I got to eat brownies for my second meal today! That probably won't happen again. I was also in one of the best moods I could be in today. I felt happy and I felt so much joy in what I was doing. I realized today that this challenge is going to be extremely difficult and I sat and thought if I should really do it. But, I know I can. God knows I can do hard things and I know he will strengthen me this week. I've realized that we become so needy in our world today. It is hard for us to give up some of the simplest things that we have, but already I am feeling a new sense of gratitude and I can't wait to see what the week throws at me. I'll keep you posted every one to two days during my challenge. Hope you stay tuned! Most of my post will have a lot more depth to them, I promise.

My bed for the week... :/

This will definitely be my motto for the week and I will be become a witness that the Lord is with me wherever I am in a new way.