Faith

This time tomorrow, I will be done with my very first half marathon. I decided to take it extremely easy with training this week. I've been pretty exhausted and knew I needed to chill if I had any chance of making it 13.1 miles. With that said, Satan has certainly crept into my thoughts, and this week- my dreams.

I've dreamt a few times this week that something happens mid-race, prohibiting me from finishing. I've also dreamt that the race was poorly marked throughout, causing me to be lost and to lose time. Obviously, the Evil One loves to capitalize on these dreams and try and convince you that they are true... It's a good thing I have the Creator on my side.

My dear friend from college always has the most inspiring status updates on her FB. This week, there was no doubt one of them was meant for my eyes: If He did it before, He can do it again. Same God right now, same God back then. Be encouraged, you didn't come this far just to lose!!

And that's what I'm going to leave you with now. Good news to come in the next update... God willing!

Hebrews 13:8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

John 3:30 He must become greater; I must become less.

Matthew 17:20 If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, "Move from here to there," and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.

Encourage

This past week I had the privilege of cruising to the Bahamas with my sister and two friends. The ocean is such a wonderfully gorgeous phenomenon to me. I couldn't look at it without being overwhelmed by the majesty of God. It's one of those things you just can't tear your eyes off of. The fact that there is an entire world down there beneath the surface completely blows my mind. God is so good.

At our second port, my sister and I took advantage of a day trip and hopped on a catamaran to ride the waves... when they dropped the anchor we spent about 45 minutes snorkeling. The colors and life we saw were incredible in that crystal clear/blue water. Fish of all shapes & sizes swam in and around corrals that surrounded our view. One of my favorite things about this experience was simply how quiet everything was as I watched from above. Sometimes is just takes being quiet to hear (and see) what God has put right in front of you. Psalm 46:10 Be still, and know that I am God. When you are gazing into the mighty waves in the middle of the ocean, it is really hard to do anything else but be still. Especially at sunrise.

With the cruise happening only 2 weeks before my upcoming half marathon, I had to find time to run. Although I didn't run as much as I should have, I couldn't have done it without the help of my friend and sister, who rooted me on as I passed them every 1/11 of a mile. You see, the track at the top of the ship was very small, so running long distances can be difficult because you see the same thing over and over. So, every 11th of a mile my cheer team was there... It makes me think about how accountability helped me to be successful in something that I was finding monotonous and just plain challenging. I guarantee you I wouldn't have finished my run if they had not of been there. I am blessed to have such a loving sister and friend who always build me up, believe and me, and root me on. Ephesians 4:29b Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words may be an encouragement to those who hear them. And oh, how we need that encouragement in our spiritual life, too. Who do you encourage, pray for, and lift up? 

Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon... t-minus 7 days. Will you cheer me on?

Consistency

I'm happy to report that since I last updated, I've set a few personal records. On February 10th, I ran 7 miles, which was the longest distance I'd ever run. Six days later I beat that when I ran 8 miles. Last weekend I was fortunate enough to finish my 7th 10K, and ran it in under an hour (9 minutes faster than my fastest). That even shocked myself!! Today was my last PR- 10 miles around the neighborhood.

When I finished my 10K race, just after I picked my jaw off the ground from my finishing time, my first thought was, "How 'bout that? Consistent training DOES help..." And I don't believe it's any different when it comes to my relationship with Christ.

Lately, I haven't been great at spending time DAILY in the Word. Praying and conversing with Christ happens a lot (especially now that He's formally invited on every run), and I oftentimes wake up in the morning with Bible verses on my mind or hymns in my head... but as far as carving out a consistent time to read my Bible goes, it's been off and on. I can't help but wonder how many more heart beats I would use for Him if I conditioned my heart more often by filling it with the Word. I want to be ready for Him to use me at any moment, and not ever find myself in a "I wish I'd trained harder" situation.

It doesn't surprise me at all that God had me read this verse today:

Colossians 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; in all wisdom teaching and advising one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts unto God.

A 10K finish in 59:19. Jumping for joy!