Travel vs. Home

Home building things or traveling seeing the Stanley Cup? I vote both.
If you are interested in buying the Home Sweet Home sign you can here!

This summer had been a whirlwind.

We traveled so much over the last few months. It's given me a new perspective, which...since this is a blog...I'm wanting to share!

I've always been the type of girl that's wanted to go on adventures. Thankfully, growing up, my parents got the opportunity to take me all over the world. I've been to see the Midwest, the Northeast, California, the Grand Canyon, and so many other places in the U.S. I've been to Italy, Belgium, Paris, Beijing, and the list goes on internationally. I really do thank my parents for being the kind of people that value experiences with those you love rather than the acquisition of things. I feel like the experiences I got to have while traveling have taught me a ton about people and a ton about myself as well.

Thankfully, that spirit hasn't died since getting married. Some of our most special times as a couple has been traveling whether it was just us or with our families.

When I was at my last job I didn't travel as much because of the way my job schedule was. I felt a void in my life where I once got to travel a ton and now I was hardly leaving home. So when I came to my current job where I could travel with more frequency, I was excited. However, I had no idea how much travel was going to come this summer. I was gone at least once a month since May. At one point we were only home one weekend out of a five weekend stretch. At the end of the summer I didn't feel full and refreshed with a passion for life like I normally do after traveling. Instead I felt drained. Exhausted beyond just lack of sleep. All I wanted to do was to be home.

So what changed? Why have I gone from being this passionate world traveler to a homebody?

I think it all comes to rhythm.

One of the things I love about my current job is that I don't ever have a week that looks the same. I never know what God is going to put in my life from week to week. It keeps me on my toes. It makes me excited to see Him work in unexpected ways. However, I think I have come to crave some type of rhythm in the rest of my life. It's why the girl who never likes to clean seems to always get to laundry done on Mondays and why I get sad if I have to miss my run with my training group during the week. I am craving these things that remind me what day of the week it is. It's why holidays and birthdays and traditions are so important to me. They ground me and remind me where I come from and what life is all about.

While I mull over these thoughts, I can't help but conclude that I think this is a God given design. We definitely need to travel and meet people who are not like us and experience all that God has created on this Earth to the fullest extent we can in our short life spans. He teaches us valuable life lessons in this travel. However, I think God has designed in each of us the desire for a place to call home. Why do you think we have tons and tons of shows who's sole purpose is to show you who to decorate your house?

However, don't you think it's interesting that we never seem completely satisfied by either being home or traveling? We always want to take the next big trip or decorate our house some more. I think this is God designed too. We will never be satisfied until we get to our ultimate home, heaven. There, we will have the ultimate, permanent place to call home and yet tons and tons to explore all at the same time. I think it took traveling so much this summer to show me how much God must have a longing for us to come home someday so that we can explore all he has made for us.

So, while I still look forward to the trips I have for the rest of the year, I'm excited about the fact that I have a place to call home. That I can cook Taco Tuesdays in my kitchen. That I have a garage for us to build a small business. That my Vinylmation minions watch me type this blog in silent solidarity on my desk. I'm perfectly fine with balancing travel and life at home. And thankfully, someday, I will get to explore my ultimate home thanks to the perfect love that God has for us.

We Get Permission to Fail!

I had the most interesting experience yesterday. We had a run scheduled (Tempo Intervals: 2000m with a 400m recovery three times in case anyone was really wondering). I laced up my kicks and grabbed my dog and my husband and I hit the pavement. But as we made it to the park, we found it incredibly crowded! Families of all sizes were out with their shiny new bikes and scooters. Puppies were being walked. Kids were playing in the trails. Soccer games were being played. It was beautiful. I didn't mind that I had to run on the grass often. I was just glad to see everyone out enjoying a beautiful day instead of watching TV on their couches.

We even saw one of my best friends Ashely! You may have heard how awesome she is in an earlier blog post. She was out running too and I was so glad to give her a big sweaty hug! We briefly talked (we're on our runs right?) and as we left, she announced, "Professional runners! Coming through!"

We laughed and I assured her, she's a professional too. But I started looking around and realizing many people out here are starting their "New Years Fitness Plan." They are going to ride their bike, run or walk x amount of days in a week and lose x amount of pounds. My beat up kicks were looking pretty worn out compared to some of the white new sneakers some people were wearing. What started whirring in my head is the question.

"If this is what people's new year resolutions are, how long will it last?"

I have felt different come this new years. I am not starting a new fitness plan, but cumulating a year and a half of training for a marathon. I'm on my third pair of sneakers and the new ones are already not new. And I didn't start this goal at the new year of 2012. I started it in August. Which makes no sense if you know about the heat in Texas in August.

But I stuck with it. So what was it that kept me working a year and a half later to get me to this point? As I mulled it over, I felt like it might help someone out there.

1. I felt that this journey was a calling from Jesus. You may think I'm crazy for saying that. But if you have read my past blog posts, you will realize that I've held this belief from the beginning. I believe that after thinking so negatively for so long, God challenged me to try. He gave me all the equipment I need...I just needed to trust him and go do it.

For once in my life I had goals. It gave me purpose and direction. That purpose and direction in my physical life overflowed into every other aspect of my life. It's a strange, supernatural phenomena. But because I listened to God in my fitness, I was able to hear him more clearly in the rest of my life. What I found is that Jesus gave us a purpose to live, no matter what area of life we are talking about. Jesus said trust Him and and love people. As I ran and wondered what I was doing, I decided to trust God and pray for people that I passed. I found that to be key to keeping me running and key to me making progress in every other goal I've made in day to day life.

2. It's ok not to be perfect. In the past I've made new years resolutions and when I fail on doing it perfectly, I give up all together. When people create art, do you think they do it perfectly from beginning to end? Of course not. That's why we have erasers for pencils and the ability to paint over things! But if an artist gave up the moment they made a mistake on their art pieces, they would never finish some of the beautiful artwork that inspires us today. In fact, some of the mistakes become inspirations to take the art to a totally higher level than they were expecting.

When I train, I don't do all my workouts! I miss some because life happens. I have found it key to forgive myself for missing a workout and getting right back on the workout wagon whenever I can to making sure I stick with my training plan and complete my goals.

What's even better, is that the Bible tells us that we have hope that God will forgive our sins. If you truly trust in Jesus, we can have full confidence that when we fail fighting sin and bad patterns in our lives (that we try to correct with new years resolutions), it will be forgiven and we can start again! The freedom to fail gives us the hope to fight against the sinful parts of our lives!

3. Christ will help us in our fight...if we ask him. I remember some of the early runs and I'm dying at the end. My legs are spent and I can't breathe. I used to repeat over and over in my head "I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me."And you know, I made it through the run. Ironically, I do the same thing whether it's a three mile run or a twenty mile run. I hold the same conviction that Jesus is the source of my hope and my faith and He supernaturally helps in one way or another.

When we come across times where we can't seem to break cycles or the running gets tough or a relationship seems eternally broken, we can ask for help. If we trust God and love people and truly believe that as sons and daughters of Christ that our sins are forgiven, the supernatural will occur in our lives and we will see Christ come through in the fight.

So as you make your resolutions (and I think you should) I hope that you think about the fact that you are launching into something that hopefully, you can sustain longer than just a year. Hopefully, you can trust God to guide you and to build upon your faithfulness.

And remember, 2 Timothy says that even if we are unfaithful, God remains faithful because he cannot deny himself!

Happy New Year everyone.

Authentic Contentment

Hello everyone! It's been an amazing week and weekend so far!

Last weekend I got to run another race with my parents..the Rhar and Sons Oktoberfest 5K! While I couldn't drink the beer due to my food allergy, I still had tons of fun with my parents and set a PR for my 5K!

Mom and I before the race!

Right before the start!

Post Race Festivities!

I finally (officially!) PR'ed my 5K at 29:54.6!

Now, one thing I want to make sure gets across, is that it's easy to look at someone who's achieved a ton of their goals (especially all at once) and say, "Wow. It's great you can do that. You are superwomen! I can't do what you do."

And if that's what you have to say, then I have failed as the goal of my blog. This blog isn't to show off to the world about my running. I'm not that good in the first place! But what I hope you see is someone who was challenged, set goals, and worked step by step to meet them. I had two major milestones this past week that had me on cloud nine. But they have been milestones months in the making. A year and a month if you want to be exact! I am a normal, messed up human being with sin and trials and, thankfully, a Savior. I couldn't run 30 seconds at the beginning of this journey. I hope you see my writing as an authentic representation of what God is teaching me, and I hope He is using it to encourage and challenge you to be in His presence, in His love. Without him none of this is possible.

Something along the same lines that I have learned from it all, is that while I set goals and strive to achieve them, I have actually learned how to live in the moment. I have learned to enjoy the journey. I don't run and pine or worry over the ability to run a marathon. I simply say, "This is what I can do today, and it's the next step to get me where I need to be tomorrow." I've been able to spend some quality time with God on my long runs. I've learned to worship him even if my legs are screaming and some of my most treasured moments with him have been while I'm alone running through his creation. I've learned that God has me right where I need to be no matter what the circumstances and I am content in that!

So with that said, here's to another round of training. This one leads to my BIG goal, the one I've been working toward for 13 months. The Walt Disney World Marathon!

Here we go!

The Value of Hard Work

Hi everyone! It's been a busy week! I however, successfully managed to get work done and make it to Houston for our leadership summit and make in back in one piece after having car issues with the hubby's truck!

Earlier this week, driving to work, Jared and I listened to a podcast by Breakaway Ministries where Ben Stuart talks about the value of hard work. It's been a theme let me say. Jared and I have had several conversations about our generation and how if something gets hard without instantaneous results, people give up and move on to something else. It's very rare that we come across somebody who puts in the work day in and day out to get to the goal they have set for themselves. Ben talks about this phenomena in our generation in the podcast and it was something that came up on my run today.

It's been a hot summer. I've found it frustrating to run this summer as my paces have significantly decreased and I find myself walking a good deal more on my runs than I would like. I know this is normal. But I tend to get discouraged when I feel like I can't run like I used to just a few months ago. I've held on to the fact that if I put in the work this summer, it will pay off in the fall when temperatures get a bit cooler. If I push my endurance and my speed relative to how hot it is, it will definitely be rewarded in the fall and winter months where it counts (hello marathon!).

Today, it rained all day. I was so excited when my car said it was 75 degrees outside on my way home! I didn't even need a nap after church. I ate lunch with the parents, did a couple of things necessary for work and Duchess and I went on a glorious run through the park in the rain. It was so nice! I was able to run faster than I did pre-summer at a consistent 11'02"/mi AND I increased my pace from to a 9'40"/mi pace on the last mile! I was so happy! I didn't have to wait until fall to see the results of my hard work this summer. Today I got a glimpse of what I'm accomplishing even if I can't see it hot Texas day by hot Texas day.

You may be in a situation at work, with a friend, on a project, losing weight, anything where you are putting in time and effort and you don't see results. There is change, but sometimes, it is too small for you to notice. If I lose 0.14 pounds every day, then in a year I will have lost 52 pounds. However, I may not notice the change on a day to day basis. Only if I look at pictures of myself three months down the road verses when I started will I realize the amount of change in my body! I want to encourage you, whatever work you are putting in will pay off if God is in the mix. Pray about it, see if you are in the place God wants you to be. Then if the answer is yes, trust that if you put in the work, God will bless it!

"My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you will be perfect and complete, not deficient in anything."

James 1:2-4

Too busy to run...or am I?

Good morning everyone! I hope you all slept well and are beginning to enjoy the weekend before the 4th!

This morning I woke up and the first thought in my head was, "Ugg." That pretty much summed up how I felt this morning. Problem is, I had a bunch of things to do this morning, including a long seven mile run. That was pretty much the last think I wanted to do this morning.

I gave myself a ton of excuses to not go. I've been really good with my running schedule this week. I am tired. I had a ton going on this weekend already. I never gave myself a reason to go.

But I ended up going anyways. And when I returned to the house at the halfway point to drop off the dog, I managed to get past my excuses and go back out to finish the last three miles.

And as I'm running, I was like, "What got me out here in the early Texas heat?"

I really can't give you an answer on why I went. I can't give you a reason on why I finished. So the only answer I can think of is, habit.

Whaaaaaa?

Yes, I believe running has become a habit to me now. I just went and did it, Nike swoosh style. Yes I'm busy. I work part time, help my mom with jobs around the house on the side and run a ministry. I don't have a ton of time. But I am proof that if you do something with dedication over a long period of time, you will make it habit and it will soon become a staple in your lifestyle. This goes for working, reading your Bible, eating healthy, being intentional in communicating with family and friends, anything!

Now excuse me while I sit on the couch doing nothing until I have to go into work!

Not Tomorrow

Hi everyone! Happy Memorial Day weekend! We've been in Dallas this weekend getting ready for our move. This has brought a great amount of time to get to spend with my family. I love it! We've also been getting ready for summer. Dad cleaned the porch and we used the pool after our long run!

Today shouldn't be a long post since I just have a small bit of encouragement to give today. There have been several times during the last couple of weeks while I've been traveling where I have had to adjust my routine with my workout schedule and my diet. I don't have everything I have at home and sometimes eating out requires me to be the demanding customer. Unfortunately, I have to in order to keep my body healthy...I don't want to get sick by eating something I'm allergic to! Sometimes I'm very good about what I eat and how much. Sometimes, I eat way too many chips at the Mexican restaurant. Other times, I know I've made good choices with my salads and fish!

When it comes to my workout schedule, I don't get to work out at the times I normally do. I have to adjust my routine in order to spend time with family. Some weeks, that means my long run is on Sunday instead of Saturday and my whole schedule feels off. 

I used to be the person where if I couldn't follow a workout or diet perfectly, I would beat myself up about it and tend to not stick with it. But now, I realize I will never have a perfect workout routine or a perfect diet. The key is consistency. Having to go gluten free gave me a perspective that has changed my life. Every time I eat is an opportunity to intentionally give my body the fuel it needs. Sure sometimes I just eat what I want, but I do it much less now than I did a year ago. I used to not count calories. When I started I thought it was a bummer. But now, I can eat that ice cream without guilt because I know I've eaten healthy and I'm confident my little bowl of ice cream fits in my calorie count. 

Discipline and consistency in my workout and diet gives me freedom I haven't known before. Plus, since I'm consistently coming in with a calorie deficit, I'm slowly shedding the pounds. Am I winning any Biggeset Loser records? Ha. Yea right. But I am feeling better and living larger and I have more energy to do the things I have felt The Lord has called me to do!

So please, don't get discouraged or beat yourself up over eating that bag of chips or pack of cookies. Dont say you will start again tomorrow. Just see your next meal today as an opportunity to get back on track!

Consistency is Key

Hi everyone! I am coming back from a little "hiatus" from posting because I had a crazy week last week! I had to head out to a funeral last weekend, then fit everything in for work between Monday and Wednesday because Jared and I took our summer vacation early and headed to Boston!

It's ironic that I'm talking about consistency after I haven't been very consistent the last few days on posting. Enjoy the irony.

But today, I went running and I was feeling great. I've lost a few pounds recently (it's like my body finally had an "aha" moment...it helps to count calories too) and I can feel the difference when I run. I feel lighter, faster and dare I say, sleeker when I run. Don't ask me why I describe it that way...it's just the word that comes into my head when I try to describe the feeling!

However, I broke a cardinal rule of running; I started my run way too fast. I wasn't able to hold my pace and each mile just got slower and slower. By the end, I was dying. My stomach was really mad at me and was making me feel it while my legs protested every step of the last two miles (and it was only a four mile run). While I am proud of my mental skills to keep pushing myself, I'm mad at my mental skills for not using my noggin at the BEGINNING of the run. Many times, this is what makes or breaks a runner during a long distance race. They get amped up at the beginning, run with people who are going too fast and then dog it the last part of the race.

What we should do is find the point where we know we can sustain the whole race at that speed. What I've learned from reading Tom Holland's book "The Marathon Method" is the trick with the long distance race isn't who goes the fastest, it's who slows down the least. All I can say is, amen brother. So having a consistent pace where you can run that same pace the entire race is a crucial skill I need to learn in order to have a great race experience.

Consistency is something we need to learn in life too. I have been reading "Mere Christianity." It's my second time through the book and it still never ceases to amaze me the kind of wisdom that comes from C. S. Lewis' mind. He talks about morality as it pertains to an individual person. It's true, that when we see someone do a courageous act, we call them courageous. When we see someone being kind, we label them as a kind person. However, we could be wrong. We don't know the motives behind someone's actions. They could be kind but be doing it for the wrong reasons which would not make them a kind person. The key to having character, to being a just, wise, kind, loving person like God designed us to be, is consistency. When someone chooses to be kind to not just one person, but all the people around them, then they are a kind person. When someone is courageous no matter the situation, we then say they are a courageous person. Time and testing show the true colors of someone. We can't (and shouldn't every) judge someone just based off of one moment of their life. C. S. Lewis gives the example that even a broken clock shows the correct time at least twice a day.

So take a page from James 1:2-4
"My brothers and sisters, consider it nothing but joy when you fall into all sorts of trials, because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect effect, so that you will be perfect and complete, not deficient in anything."

Let the testing begin. And in the meantime...run. :)