Life's Not a Sprint...

Are you one of those people that wishes something would "hurry up?"

Maybe you're excited for an upcoming trip, a paycheck or a bonus, for your kids to go back to school, for a project to be completed, for an investment to reach maturity, for your house to be sold, for a flower to bloom, or maybe a brisket to be fully cooked. Whatever the case, life is all about "waiting" for something.

For some of you, if you're like me, you're excited for the upcoming football season. Personally, I can't wait until September 5th arrives... specifically, 2:30 PM. That is when my Baylor Bears take on the Demon Deacons of Wake Forest. In fact, there is a countdown clock on Baylor's website depicting the time in days/hours/minutes/seconds for when kickoff happens! What if you had "that" as your measuring stick for whatever you're anticipating???

But while we're anxiously awaiting the "season" to begin, have you ever thought "why" you're waiting? The teams aren't ready... they aren't "fully prepared." Simply put, it's not the right time...

The same goes with any of the above items I listed (or you may be thinking of)... we have to wait until something... or someone... is ready. And maybe that "someone" is you...

Let's take the marathon example. If you've followed this blog prior to my injury, you well know the preparation it took me to be able to run 13.1 miles. I didn't just show up to the race that day... I was prepared. I had trained. I had pushed my body to the point where I could run for over 2 hours to complete that half marathon. It took me 4 months to prepare... but I was ready.

When I trained for a full marathon, it took over 8 months to get ready for almost 5 hours of pounding the pavement. I ran the 1999 White Rock Marathon (26.2 miles) in 4 hours 48 minutes... incidently, on a bad knee! In 2007 I did the same thing - ran another marathon - and it took another 8-9 months of incredibly difficult training to be ready to run the Chicago Marathon. That same year, I ran 13.1 in the Nashville Half Marathon. Again, 4 months of preparation...

Now if you read the blog I wrote last Sunday regarding "The Pit," I wanted to expand upon that today. You see, I think we can all agree that I want to be back to normal again... mainly, I want these dang wires out of my knee!

But, they can't come out yet... the knee isn't ready. I'm not ready.

One of the main lessons I feel God has taught me through all of this is humility. From the moment this "pit" happened, I had to rely on others. To me, one of the most humbling memories was lying on a gurney and being rolled into surgery. I had to put my faith in the skills of others... and to know who was ultimately in control.

Through humility, my next lesson was patience. Believe you me... this has been a very hard lesson! I've tried to be patient when asking for help... it's a blessing to have others serve you, so why rush them? Patience also comes from re-learning something that you once knew how to do, like walking. My first steps after surgery were disastrous - I was on my crutches and almost fell several times. After that, I had to rely on a walker for several weeks. I then graduated to crutches. I was then able to move without the crutches, but still with a brace. Now, it's all gone... yet, I'm still struggling and having to remind myself... "BE PATIENT!"

Finally, it's about endurance... as in, "Are you ready to endure all of this?" I'm fortunate in that I have a strong network of friends and family around me. They haven't made any jokes at my expense, or have lost their patience on me (as far as I know - ha!). They slow down when they walk - believe me, it's recognized. But I think they see that I've been enduring quite a bit these past few months... and they know that it's going to get a little rougher when I have to undergo another surgery in November/December. While endurance might be taken as "pain," it's more than that to me. It's acceptance.

I have to accept where I am "in this life" and what I can and can't do at this time. Life changes... as we all know... but I believe we need to be content with each stage. Last week a friend asked if I would like to join him in climbing a mountain in the near future... then asked, "How's the knee?" I have been invited on a river trip - tubing - but had to decline because that's just not safe for my situation. Yesterday Chandra and I drove from the Flying Saucer to our favorite Italian place (Momo's) - a distance we normally would walk. Again... I need to accept what I can do and know that this won't be "this way" forever.

So while I'm learning about what God is teaching me in this pit, I just wanted to share with you that all of this is a process. No matter what we go through in life, I firmly believe God wants us to learn from it... to grow from it... and to develop a deeper and richer bond with Him.

It's a marathon... plain and simple... not a sprint. And we are in training... along the way, we will have to overcome obstacles. We will be tested. We will be shaped. We will be weakened... and we will be strengthened. Life isn't supposed to be easy. And neither is training for a marathon.

God wants us to be the best "runners" that we can be. And hopefully, whenever we reach the end, we will be prepared.

Whatever you are going through right now, God is with you. If you are waiting on something (or for someone), God is with you. Be humble. Demonstrate patience. Endure and persevere. Accept where you are in life... mainly, be content with your life. I promise you, it will change your perspective and you will see the light at the top of your pit.

I believe this with all my heart and soul... and knee!

"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"

Hebrews 12:1-2