Why I still Run

Yesterday was my last workout before the RnRNola half marathon this Sunday.

Non-runners, hang in there and keep reading. :)

It consisted of  2x2mile tempo and 1x800m at 10k pace. I felt great and negative split until I was done.  Every workout this month has had a short recovery time which enables my body to keep working during that time.  I basically never feel like I get a break which is very different from the workouts I did in college.  Not to say that there isn't a time for full recovery to run shorter and faster intervals, but it is definitely not my focus right now.  It is humbling to run workouts at half marathon pace instead of 5k pace. I have to remember that there is a different goal , and we are working to improve in a different way.  After a few months to a year, I believe I will see big improvements.  However, right now I am working my way up there.

As of January, I have a new coach, Stephanie Rothstein Bruce.  She is an elite marathoner for Adidas and NAZ elite as well as her husband, Ben Bruce, who is about to be a pro at almost every distance given he is debuting in the marathon this weekend in Nola. Stephanie is also the co-founder of Picky Bars along with Lauren Fleshman , who was 7th in the World in the 5000m in 2011.  I have truly enjoyed how each workout has been different and the communication that we have been able to have.  I am excited to cheer Ben on this weekend and especially to meet them in person for the first time. Also, Deena Kastor will be there! Deena is one of two American women who have won an Olympic Marathon medal. She holds the American marathon record of 2:19:36 and half marathon record of 1:07:34. Kara Goucher's 1:06 was not on a record breaking approved course.  She's kind of a BIG DEAL. I hope the running community is not clueless to who she is like they were with Mo Farah, who won TWO Gold Medals, one in the 5000m and one in the 10,000m, at the London Olympics in 2012. Watch here: Nola news crews asks Mo if he has ever run before

I have run the half marathon in Nola 3 times, and it is always one of my favorites.  I have spent a lot of time in the city of New Orleans over the years and fell in love with its culture and Saints' Football. I actually have my PR of 1:29 there.  Unfortunately, this year I am not racing it but doing a long progression run in which I will start out conservatively and negative split every 5k or so.  We shall see.  I know that I am capable to run sub 1:29, and my 5k and 10k times suggest that.  I just need to have the perfect training and the perfect race conditions to do so one day. One day... Lord, please.

That is only ONE of my many goals. I find it has been difficult in my life to decide how dedicated I should be to running while being completely sold out living for Jesus.  I tend to make this more complicated than it truly is. Chariots of Fire's Eric Liddell, the 400m Olympic Gold Medalist in the 1924 Olympics and a martyr for Jesus Christ, said it best:

"I believe God made me for a purpose, and that is for China. But He also made me fast, and when I run I feel His pleasure.  To not do so would be to hold Him in contempt."

Now, in no way did God create me as fast as Eric Liddell, but He did create me to believe in Jesus, live for Him, and to bring Him glory while also making me somewhat of a talented runner, above average as a whole. I do believe that God made me for a purpose, to be a missionary (literally meaning-one who is sent. Yes, I know the gospel needs to be preached here in American, and believe me, Shane and I and the people of Grace Community Church, by the grace of God, are doing that) somewhere (wherever He sends Shane and me) and to be willing to die for Him as Eric did. It is true that He made me a runner and that I feel His pleasure when I run.  Some runs have been my most intimate times with Him filled with prayer or singing or in awe of His creation.  I do believe that He can receive glory in it. That is, if I give Him the glory in which He is due."He who glories let him glory in the Lord." 1 Cor. 1:31

It can be done. Did any of you see Kevin Durant thanking God ? When asked why he was on a roll and playing well lately he said, "Jesus Christ." The interviewer laughed and asked, "So you had nothing to do with it?" And he did not claim to.  Amen!!! I am praying for him today, as he is persecuted for giving God credit, that he will stay strong in the Lord and know that all who are godly will suffer persecution (2 Tim. 3:12), and I am thanking God for the glory He was shown through the boldness of Kevin Durant.

That is why I still run.  The Lord has taught me so much through running.  And you know what? I believe he created us as humans with the ability to run for that reason (Heb.12:1-2, 1 Cor. 9:24,-27, 1 Tim. 4:8)! He created marriage to be a portrait of the gospel (Eph 5), palm trees and the cedars of Lebanon to show growth and unity in Christ (Ps. 92:12), fig trees to bear fruit like we should bear fruit (Mark 11, James 3:12, Matt. 7:17-19, John 15), our body to need water and bread to show us our dependency on Him (Deut.8:3).... and so much more! None of these are coincidences that we brilliantly find in our life on earth and turn to a metaphor in the Bible. Don't you see that God made it that way to glorify HIM? He is in ALL things (Col. 1:17).  We CAN run and glorify Him at the same time, and if we, as believers, ran and did not, then we should no longer do it. Look at Ryan and Sara Hall. I thank the Lord often for the way they serve Him.