Act of Worship: My Richmond Race Report
This fall has been a whirlwind of experiences and countless precious memories. It has been a culmination of many things and a season of both celebration and thankfulness. God has been opening my eyes to the encouraging and supportive he has surrounded me with to remind me each day just how loved I truly am. My friends and family do such a wonderful job of being the hands and feet of Jesus in my life as they help me to see the Lord's face all around me. In the past few weeks I have been able to see glimpses of joy and sustenance for my soul even in the most seemingly mundane of tasks.
One of those, as strange as it sounds is homework. This semester I am taking five exercise science classes and one world literature class to fulfill my last general education requirement. I absolutely love my major classes, but it has been so refreshing to have one class that is entirely different from all the others. And it gives me an excuse to spend hours reading and embracing my "inner-Matilda" without feeling guilty about it. I get to sit in the coffee shop and read books for homework, and it is wonderful!!
Probably the most exciting thing that has happened in my life recently has been running the Richmond Marathon. I have been training for many months preparing for my race and I was hopeful to see how I would do. I ran my first marathon as my senior project in high school with my mom and dad. This race was more about completing the distance and making it to the finish line. It was such a special experience to finish my first marathon with my parents, two of my best friends who are also two of my biggest supporters and sources of encouragement. Despite getting separated a little in the latter miles of the race, we all crossed the finish line together, and I wouldn't trade that memory for the world.
I initially wanted to try to go back and run the same race to commemorate my senior year of college, but registration filled up too quickly this year, so that option was a no-go. I work at Bull City Running, and they offered a half and full marathon training program this year; a lot of the runners were doing Richmond for their goal race, so I started to look at that race as by back-up plan. I ended up registering kind of on a whim late one night because I had a discount code that expired at midnight...nothing like a pro-rated registration fee to convince you to sign up for a marathon...
I didn't have an official training program set up for me, but I would say I was pretty consistent and regimented with my training in the months leading up to the race. My dream goal was to run the qualifying standard for Boston, which is 3:35 for women 18-35. I wanted to think I could do it, but I wasn't really sure what to expect since it would be my first time really "racing" a marathon. To say I was nervous in the weeks and days leading up to my race would be a huge understatement.
A good friend called me the night before my race to wish me good luck and to see what my expectations were. He pointed out what a cool opportunity the marathon is for evangelism - anyone who has run one knows that miles 18-26.2 kind of suck. But any time I was feeling particularly tired I reflected on how much more Jesus had endured on my behalf. I focused on thanking God for the strength he had given me to bring me to that point and praying that He would empower me to keep pressing onward to the finish line of the race.
My race was a time for me to connect with God, as strange as that may sound. One of the beauties of the marathon is that it provides plenty of time to think and reflect...which can be a runner's downfall or their saving grace. Over the years I have wondered a lot about why I love distance running, and one of the reasons that stands out to me is that it is the best physical manifestation of my faith and relationship with God. There comes a point in time when I reach the limitations of my own strength and ability, and I have to rely on something bigger than myself. Running is so much more than logging miles and striving for fast finish times - it is an opportunity for me to connect with God in a unique way. So my race was a celebration of this passion God has given me and the way He sustains me and allows me to accomplish things far beyond my imaginations.
My prayer going into my race was that it would somehow be my act of worship. Past the 10K mark I wouldn't let myself look at my half-marathon or 20 mile splits because I wanted to just enjoy the race and not get psyched out worrying about my time. Seeing some familiar faces along the course was a huge encouragement and motivation to me. My Dad met me at around the 16 mile mark to do a handoff of one final hammer gel to get me to the end of the race. When I saw him I started crying because I was so excited and I could see in his face how proud of me he was. He asked me if I had enough left in the tank to get through, and for the first time I could say with confidence that I really thought I had it in me to stay strong to the finish. From there to the finish all blends together a little - each mile marker I passed brought me that much closer to the finish and fulfilling my goal. I had no idea of my time until I was literally coming down the hill to the finish and I saw the line and clock in front of me. Elation washed over me as I saw the time on the clock and I realized that by the grace of God I had finished my marathon and qualified for Boston! I fell into my Dad's arms after receiving my finisher's medal and blanket and cried as I could finally say that "I did it! I really did it!"
My official chip time was 3:29:14 which I was ecstatic about - I blew my own expectations out of the water! The whole race experience was wonderful - even though I was physically exhausted, I was spiritually refreshed and filled with so much joy and love. My race turned out to be about so much more than a finisher's medal and my time - it was a celebration of months of training and hard work and every high and low that brought me there. It was my act of worship and an opportunity to connect with my relationship with God and search my heart.
One of those, as strange as it sounds is homework. This semester I am taking five exercise science classes and one world literature class to fulfill my last general education requirement. I absolutely love my major classes, but it has been so refreshing to have one class that is entirely different from all the others. And it gives me an excuse to spend hours reading and embracing my "inner-Matilda" without feeling guilty about it. I get to sit in the coffee shop and read books for homework, and it is wonderful!!
Probably the most exciting thing that has happened in my life recently has been running the Richmond Marathon. I have been training for many months preparing for my race and I was hopeful to see how I would do. I ran my first marathon as my senior project in high school with my mom and dad. This race was more about completing the distance and making it to the finish line. It was such a special experience to finish my first marathon with my parents, two of my best friends who are also two of my biggest supporters and sources of encouragement. Despite getting separated a little in the latter miles of the race, we all crossed the finish line together, and I wouldn't trade that memory for the world.
 |
| Before the start of the St. Jude Memphis Marathon in December 5, 2009 |
I didn't have an official training program set up for me, but I would say I was pretty consistent and regimented with my training in the months leading up to the race. My dream goal was to run the qualifying standard for Boston, which is 3:35 for women 18-35. I wanted to think I could do it, but I wasn't really sure what to expect since it would be my first time really "racing" a marathon. To say I was nervous in the weeks and days leading up to my race would be a huge understatement.
A good friend called me the night before my race to wish me good luck and to see what my expectations were. He pointed out what a cool opportunity the marathon is for evangelism - anyone who has run one knows that miles 18-26.2 kind of suck. But any time I was feeling particularly tired I reflected on how much more Jesus had endured on my behalf. I focused on thanking God for the strength he had given me to bring me to that point and praying that He would empower me to keep pressing onward to the finish line of the race.
My race was a time for me to connect with God, as strange as that may sound. One of the beauties of the marathon is that it provides plenty of time to think and reflect...which can be a runner's downfall or their saving grace. Over the years I have wondered a lot about why I love distance running, and one of the reasons that stands out to me is that it is the best physical manifestation of my faith and relationship with God. There comes a point in time when I reach the limitations of my own strength and ability, and I have to rely on something bigger than myself. Running is so much more than logging miles and striving for fast finish times - it is an opportunity for me to connect with God in a unique way. So my race was a celebration of this passion God has given me and the way He sustains me and allows me to accomplish things far beyond my imaginations.
My prayer going into my race was that it would somehow be my act of worship. Past the 10K mark I wouldn't let myself look at my half-marathon or 20 mile splits because I wanted to just enjoy the race and not get psyched out worrying about my time. Seeing some familiar faces along the course was a huge encouragement and motivation to me. My Dad met me at around the 16 mile mark to do a handoff of one final hammer gel to get me to the end of the race. When I saw him I started crying because I was so excited and I could see in his face how proud of me he was. He asked me if I had enough left in the tank to get through, and for the first time I could say with confidence that I really thought I had it in me to stay strong to the finish. From there to the finish all blends together a little - each mile marker I passed brought me that much closer to the finish and fulfilling my goal. I had no idea of my time until I was literally coming down the hill to the finish and I saw the line and clock in front of me. Elation washed over me as I saw the time on the clock and I realized that by the grace of God I had finished my marathon and qualified for Boston! I fell into my Dad's arms after receiving my finisher's medal and blanket and cried as I could finally say that "I did it! I really did it!"
My official chip time was 3:29:14 which I was ecstatic about - I blew my own expectations out of the water! The whole race experience was wonderful - even though I was physically exhausted, I was spiritually refreshed and filled with so much joy and love. My race turned out to be about so much more than a finisher's medal and my time - it was a celebration of months of training and hard work and every high and low that brought me there. It was my act of worship and an opportunity to connect with my relationship with God and search my heart.
 |
| At the finish of the Richmond Marathon - November 16, 2013 |
Comments
Post a Comment