see the link here for Ryan Hall’s blog about his attempt win the Boston Marathon this week. Ryan finished 4th, but set the American record for Boston.
The more I read about Ryan Hall, the more I am impressed with the way he integrates his faith into his running, and uses his running as a platform for reaching out to others.
In 48 days THE GAMES BEGIN ! The Olympics may involve more nations, but I suspect no event attracts more attention world-wide than the World Cup. Mark your calendars for June 12 – that’s the USA’s first match … and we get England! Let’s give the hooligans something to holler about.
South Africa is sponsoring the Cup this year and hundreds of thousands of tourists will be traveling there to view and cheer. There will be plenty of opportunity to meet and engage people from the world over. In response to this opportunity, Nations Touch is gearing up to reach people at the Cup with the Gospel of Jesus Christ using … soccer balls! Very clever outreach. Please consider supporting their effort. See details at Nation Touch’s World Cup Project.
Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win.
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; but I discipline my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified.
– 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
I enjoy preparing for long-distances races. The training has its share of hardships, but I am always motivated by how the process makes me better: faster, stronger, more efficient, etc. There are peaks and valleys, successes and failures, elation and misery. Yet at the end, many of my best experiences have come from these training times — sometimes even better than the races themselves.
Yet every race demands personal sacrifice. I am frequently not careful about what I eat, and the junk food leaves me overweight and sluggish on my next run. A close friend repeatedly attempts training, yet he is not careful about his other activities. As a result he pays the price with frequent injuries — many of which have caused him to cancel his race plans.
The list can go on. We strive to better ourselves in the physical world and to attain to a form of greatness. In the passage above, God tells us to approach our spiritual life with the same level of intensity and sacrifice that is expected of an athlete as they prepare for a big race.
Let us pursue greatness in our physical lives, but especially in our spiritual lives!
I ran my first marathon this weekend. It lived up to the billing. After the finish, I could relate to how Pheidippides must have felt after he delivered his message to the assembly in Athens. (Incidentally, this year is the quinviginticentennial of that first marathon.) The first 21 miles weren’t that bad. The last four miles were the longest miles of my life. I think they were longer than the previous 22. Time was agonizingly expanded and distances stretched.
Somewhere around mile 17, I experienced one of those periods of crisp moral and emotional clarity that I’ve mentioned before. I felt the presence of God. If my wife had been there, I might have wept at her feet out of love for her. As it was, the elation was relatively short-lived and followed not too long thereafter by increasing amounts of profound discomfort. When I finally reached the finish line, I eventually fell at the feet of my wife and children, however, that was because my legs were not at all interested in holding me up further.
Those periods of clarity are really worth the trip however. I wonder whether it’s the same clarity people experience as they face imminent death. After the race (and a shower), we were reading CS Lewis’ The Silver Chair, and came across the following passage, which takes place after Aslan explains to the heroine Jill Pole the signs she is to observe and what she is to do in Narnia:
“Here on the mountain I have spoken to you clearly: I will not often do so down in Narnia. Here on the mountain, the air is clear and your mind is clear; as you drop down into Narnia, the air will thicken. Take great care that it does not confuse your mind. And the signs which you have learned here will not look at all as you expect them to look, when you meet them there. That is why it is so important to know them by heart and pay no attention to appearances. Remember the signs and believe the signs. Nothing else matters. And now, daughter of Eve, farewell -”
On the mountain, the air and mind are clear. How unclear it sometimes becomes in the thick and tangle of events. As James reminds us, not only must we keep sight of what we are to do, we are then to do it. By God’s grace, we shall.
Triathlon season opened today for our family. My oldest daughter started the season for us.
Our first family rule of triathlon: you can eat whatever you want after your race. A related rule is that your fan club can also order whatever they want. A corollary to these rules is that triathlons require some proximity to cheeseburgers.
I’ve enjoyed training for my first marathon. Distance running and triathlons provide long, intense periods for sorting through all the mental clutter. I find that the more I have to dig down, the more I get to my “core.” It really strips away the stress and worries over small stuff and causes me to focus on relationships that matter most — with God, my wife, my children, and to my clients. Pretty much in that order. Listening to a playlist of Christian worship can turn a long run into a praise celebration.
Marathon training has really forced me to learn how to run efficiently in my “zone” — the cardiovascular state where I’m burning primarily fat instead of sugar (of which the body stores far less supply). I started to learn this in training for my first Half Ironman but really need it on long runs or the bonk is particularly miserable. As a result, I’m witnessing the Pillsbury Dough Boy middle slowly melting away, kinda like slowly watching a glacier retreat. Key word being slowly.
Front page of today’s Raleigh News & Observer features an article on Ed Brantley and Heba Salama, who are attempting to leverage their celebrity status from an episode of the Biggest Loser where together they lost somewhere around 270 pounds. They’re hoping to sell people on adopting healthier lifestyles, to include diet. She just finished her first 1/2 marathon. Good for them! Obesity is a serious and growing global pandemic. High calorie, inexpensive foods and sedentary lifestyles create fat bodies and soft minds. It’s almost sad how the Wii has become so popular since it’s almost like really playing outside and makes the user move his or her body somewhat. Why not REALLY go outside and play (Charlotte Mason had no idea how far out in front she was regarding the raising of children) … Huckabee’s personal victory against obesity and sensitivity to this issue added to his credibility as a political candidate, however, he recently interviewed the First Lady on this topic and she apparently wants to focus on grocery stores in poor urban areas and soda makers. That’s a little off — the fault lies right in the mouths of those who spend too much time lying about in front of the idiot box. Get off the couch and go chase Heba!
Our family really enjoyed watching the winter Olympics. The athletes are such fantastic examples of enthusiasm, dedication, passion and in certain events teamwork and comraderie. The grit of some of the athletes is nothing short of remarkable, like watching Anja Paerson return two days after a horrible downhill crash and win bronze on the same hill. I found my adrenalin pumping and leg muscles twitching every time Apolo Ohno skated (what a fitting name for that sport (“oh no!”)). The agony of the US Olympic hockey teams as they “won” the silver medal will be a lasting memory. The US crashing the Nord’s combined nordic party and taking it over. It’s like every event is the Super Bowl/World Cup of that particular sport … and it’s nonstop for two weeks. At least I have two years to catch back up on sleep before London …
As if it’s not enough poor form that they were the most efficient mass murderers of the 20th Century. Now, 20 years after implosion, they’re still sore losers. George Weigel’s article here.
Sapphire Sky 