Finishing the Race

I hate to beat a theme to death, but this whole running thing has been a big part of the last 8 weeks of my life. It's kinda funny, I was talking to someone at church on this past Wed. night and he was saying that he just hated running, but asked if I was enjoying it? Enjoying?? Well, I had to think about that a minute before I answered him. And honestly, at this point I would say that I am, because I actually find myself looking forward to my runs on most days. But the actual ACT of doing the running -- is that enjoyable? Actually it's ususally pretty painful. ha But I really do love the feeling that I have when I've just FINISHED a run... now that feels good. :-)
Then I had someone ask me yesterday what I was getting out of my running -- what I liked best about it? [Yes, you see what I'm talking about with people -- this really is consuming my days lately - haha.] Anyways, back to the question. Well, there is obviously the fitness part of running -- it's helping me stay in shape and I feel physically better than I have in a long time. So that's a huge benefit. Plus it's a good family activity for us -- I may never run marathons like Jack or be able to keep up with Anna, but we're having a good time running these little races around town together. But honestly, the answer to the question yesterday - what was I really getting out of my running? boiled down to this: I am most excited that I actually made a goal to run a 10K race *sometime* this year -- and here I am on eve of that race and ready to do it -- and it's only been 2 months! To set a goal, and be on the verge of achieving it, is probably the best part of this running thing I've been doing. I tend to shy away from goals because of a fear of failure, so this is a big deal for me. :-)

So this thought from Paul came to mind today:

"For I am already being poured out like a drink offering, and the time has come for my departure. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing." (II Tim 4:6-8)

You know, I wonder if he was a runner, because he sure liked these analogies :-)

Now, here's the interesting part about this run tomorrow. Earlier in the week I was watching the weather because I had a vested interest in what tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 is going to be like. :-) So my friend, the weatherman, said the forecast was partly sunny and a high of 56! Perfect!! You can't ask for better running weather than that.... well, as we all know, weathermen (fortunately for them) don't make their living off of always being RIGHT about the weather! So as of today, here is the forcast for tomorrow:

Windy. Light snow during the morning followed by clearing during the afternoon. High 43. winds NNW at 25 to 35 mph. Chance of show 70%. A slushy accumulation of less than one inch.

Ok, well, this really wasn't what I had in mind at all! My LEAST favorite thing to deal with when I run is the wind -- it's just hard to run into the wind -- and cold. And snow? Does it finally have to snow NOW? sigh. But I have to laugh and ask myself if I really thought it was going to easy to do this -- to finish the race? Because it never is. There are obstacles and set-backs -- and difficult things that you know you just have to face up to. Just like life... And so, tomorrow I will suit up in my winter running gear and be at the starting line -- and God willing, I'll make it to my goal and cross the finish line. So check back in on me in a couple days and I'll let you know how it goes... ;-)

Growing Up

I had a couple things happen today that just reminded me of the passage of time and how quickly my girls are growing up. I just got home from one of them... I dropped off Mackenzie at her friend Amanda's 16th birthday party. Actually, I should say that Mackenzie dropped herself off, since she was doing the driving! But as we pulled up, there were a couple of cars parked out in front of Amanda's house, and Mackenzie said, "Wow, how weird, that's Brook's car and that one is Christine's! It's funny to think they drove themselves here..." Hmmm... funny, yeah. I was just thinking about how I remember Mackenzie, Amanda, and Christine playing soccer together in, oh, 5th grade.... and they are so grown up now.

So there was that, and as I was going through a stack of papers today, I came across some college information and actually went online and registered Mackenzie for the first of many places I imagine we'll be requesting information from. That was a little strange, too. It's coming fast...

And not to leave out my 'baby', Anna -- we were walking into Walmart tonight (you know, to get that last minute birthday present! ha) and Anna commented that she had her favorite outfit on. The reason for that is because she had on her 'skinny' jeans and she just LOVES the yellow shirt she was wearing (it's bright) and more importantly, it brings out the hint of yellow thread in her shoes and even matches her jacket that has some yellow lettering. Perfect. :-) This from my child that a year ago could be found most days in sweat pants and a t-shirt and preferred to refer to her style as a 'gym rat.'


Well, things do change and they do grow up -- some days I just wish they could stay little. sigh.

God and the GPS Watch

I thought that with all this running that I've been doing lately, I ought to be learning something useful from it. And after 5 weeks, I finally came up with something today. :-) Jack has this great GPS watch that he uses to run. It tells him all sorts of information. It uses satellite info to tell you exactly how far you've run. It has a stop watch and a nice little calculation that displays what your 'pace' is at any given time. It even has a heart rate monitor so that you can train in your 'target zone.' Well, I was using it today when I went out to run. I'm SO happy that the weather is starting to get nicer so that I can get off the treadmill... anyway, I don't use the heart rate monitor... I think that I don't really want to know when I'm about to have a heart attack and die -- I'll just take my chances. ;-) But I was using it so that I could know how far I was going and my pace. Today's run was supposed to be for 3 miles. It's pretty interesting to me that at this point that 3 miles is beginning to seem like a 'short' run that I should push myself a little bit on. This is a sure sign that I'm making progress. Not too long ago I'd have been thrilled just to make it 3 miles!

So before I headed out, I decided that I wanted to make a goal of keeping my pace under 11:00 minutes per mile the whole way. For anyone reading this who is a real runner, stop laughing. That's pretty good for me. ;-) So off I went and things were going pretty well.... I think I was getting close to the 2 mile mark when I thought, "I might make this -- I'm doing pretty good and I still feel good... yay!" That's when I looked at the watch and saw my pace had dropped to 11:30... oops. It didn't FEEL like I was running any slower. Everything felt pretty much the same and I thought I was doing good. Needless to say, I stepped up my pace a bit and kept a closer eye on the watch for my last mile... I finished my run at a distance of 3.2 miles and I did it in 32:30. So that's an average pace of 10:16!!! That actually turns out to be a 'personal best' time for me, so I'm pretty happy about that. :-)

But here's what I realized. Without the watch, without a 'standard,' I wouldn't have made it. Relying only on how I felt I was doing turned out not to be very reliable at all. I needed something to measure myself by -- to make sure I was staying on my pace. And isn't it like that with God and His Word? Can I trust that God has given me His Word as a 'GPS watch for my soul'?? Guiding me, pacing me, keeping me on course? That regardless of what I FEEL, I'd better be glancing into His Word regularly to check on myself -- make sure I'm still 'on pace.'

Here's a verse that came to mind:

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. I Cor. 9:24-27

One last 'lesson' for the day. Today I set a goal for my pace. I haven't done that before. But that goal kept me focused and determined. Back at the Stream Franklin conference a couple of weeks ago, there was an analogy given at one point about coming into Heaven being like Jesus waiting for us at the finish line of a race. That 'picture' has stayed with me very vividly since then. Maybe it's because of all the running, I don't know. But I know that feeling of getting to the end of a race and crossing the finish line. There is such a feeling of RELIEF. I'm done, I made it! Well, this thought that Jesus will be waiting for me, with arms wide open ready to catch me as I cross that line at the end of the great race of life -- well, that's just an amazing thought to me. Having that thought and desire to be there with Jesus as a 'goal' for my life hopefully will keep me focused and determined about dealing with issues of my heart and soul that have far greater consequence to them than whether or not I run a 10K race three weeks from now... but I appreciate these 'real life' analogies that can help us see the deeper truths.

One last verse:

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. Heb 12:1-3