No Excuses

Hello everyone! I hope you had a great Sunday! We need to be extra thankful today as we remember all of those who are fighting and have fought for us in history so that we enjoy the ability to post whatever we want on Facebook without worry of getting killed...just kidding. But seriously, there have been so many ugly comments. Just chill everyone. 

Plus, everyone knows that we need to just "Stay calm and pass to Swope!" How about those Aggies??? I had to watch the game with all four dogs wondering why I was dancing around the apartment. I love being thoroughly surprised at my team's ability to win a game. It never gets old! I found some cool photos while paroosing Facebook that I'd like to share (but not take credit for!).

Hahahahaha. This week is giving me and Jared not only the normal challenge of our crazy schedules, but we are also taking care of my parent's dogs while they go on a Disney cruise to celebrate their 50th birthdays! Happy birthday Mom and Dad!

So we have Cooper, the stoic statue on the outside, manic on the inside. Here he is watching the Aggie game with Jared...

Then we have Kezi who is constantly on the search for food like it's going out of style...

Then we have Pheobe, who in this picture has actually taken up guard duty with Duchess!

Let's just say that between the three of them, they make my Duchess (the husky/lab mix) look calm!

Having the three of them here is fun but at the same time, they pose a challenge for me and Jared when we go running. Pheobe and Kezi are definitely not capable of running long distances and Cooper tries, but gets tired very early. But that was no excuse for me and Jared to not go running. We could have said, "Oh, we will just go next week." But our race is next week. We can't train the day of the race! With a little creativity and team work, we went on our interval run and the dogs got their walks in. Everyone had a good time!

Just like in working out, we can't make excuses in life for things we should be doing but don't. We see that person with a ton of bags but think, "I'm too busy to stop. I'll help someone the next time I see that situation." We see someone in class or at work having a bad day and we think, "Oh, they would never open up to me. Maybe the next person will help them out." The truth is, if we never allow ourselves to be interrupted by the Holy Spirit to show those around us the love of God, we will never actually be used by God for the purpose of building his kingdom. We will just sit in the same rut we always do and wonder why we are never growing or getting to know God deeper.

So stop making excuses for not being the hands and feet of Jesus! Truth is, it's never inconvenient and if Jesus is behind it, it's never a waste of time!

"Dear friends, let us love one another, because love is from God, and everyone who loves has been fathered by God and knows God. The person who does not love does not know God, because God is love. By this the love of God is revealed in us: that God has sent his one and only Son into the world so that we may live through him. In this is love: not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, if God so loved us, then we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God resides in us, and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we reside in God and he in us: in that he has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world." ~ 1 John 4:7-14 

Still running across America and I crossed the 100 mile mark!

The End of Week 6!

So today marks the end of training week 6. To be honest I'm shocked that I have made it this far!

Today I was really struggling with the run that seemed so easy on Sunday. Yes we were pushing ourselves and yes we went faster and further than Sunday! I didn't quit either! Yet at the end of this run I didn't feel the accomplishment like I did at the end of previous runs.

I think what is happening (after discussing my feelings with the husband) is that because I struggle with the run more than I used to I don't feel like I'm doing well. Therefore I don't realize how great I'm doing. The fact is I'm doing harder things that I did two weeks ago. I'm doing things I didn't think I could do! So I just need to take a step back and look at what I've accomplished before going back to the grindstone for what is coming up next.

Of course this wouldn't be my blog if I didn't relate this back to life. :) I think sometimes we struggle with sin and we get down on ourselves because we keep struggling with something. But we have to realize that struggle is God working in us to cleanse us of that sin. Don't wallow in the fact that you sin or carry it as a badge of honor. We don't want to just get comfortable with being able to say we are struggling with something. What we want to see is progress. Here's something I learned from Breakaway:

In the book of 1 John, John talks about how if we know Christ, we are in the light. If we don't know Christ, then we are in darkness. How do we know if we are in the light? Because we experience the amazing power of His love and that love makes us want to follow His commands. Not because we have to but because we want to. And we are not going to be sinless walking in the light, but we are going to be cleaned of our sin by Jesus over time.

'Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.' (1 John 2:4-6 ESV)

The key to this passage is the 'is perfected' part. We are being perfected right now like we have been in the past as well as in the future!

We may not see the progress or see how far we have come with Christ. But I encourage you to take the time to talk to Him and see what has happened recently in your life. Find the little victories and know in your heart that God is doing/will do a work in you and through you if you let Him!

I may get new running shoes tomorrow. :) I'll keep you posted!