Say something, I'm giving up.

It's after midnight and I can't fall asleep. I didn't even have hot chocolate or anything with caffeine in it. Instead, I have a song stuck in my head. And after an hour of learning it on the guitar trying to get it all out, it's still eating at me. GT English critical reading essays have ruined me for life I think. So you all get a treat of my insomniac critical essay on the song stuck in my head.

But I think you will like it.

The song in question is called "Say Something," by A Great Big World. It's a beautiful yet slightly haunting melody that I just can't get enough of.

Say something, I'm giving up on you.
I'll be the one, if you want me to.
Anywhere, I would've followed you.
Say something, I'm giving up on you.Immediately, I see two people, not unlike Jared and myself, who are at the end of a particularly frustrating argument. If it's me singing it, it's probably because I've done all the talking and I'm just yearning for him to engage. I'll be his girl, if he wants it. I will follow him anywhere, just like I have in the past. But I need that connection. I need him to talk with me.

And I am feeling so small.
It was over my head
I know nothing at all.

And I will stumble and fall.
I'm still learning to love
Just starting to crawl.

Here we see expectations meeting reality. The enormity of the anger, frustration, sadness and loneliness in the relationship is causing me to feel so incapable of solving it. I had expectations of love, but I obviously was naive to think that it would be like what I expected.

But hey. I realize I'm going to mess up. This is my first (and hopefully only) marriage. I'm going to mess up. Just like a toddler, I have to learn to walk before I can run.

Say something, I'm giving up on you.
I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you.
Anywhere, I would've followed you.
Say something, I'm giving up on you.

And I will swallow my pride.
You're the one that I love
And I'm saying goodbye.

When I feel like I'm getting no response, my corresponding reaction is that I can't communicate with you. My feelings are not getting heard, just causing more pain, more grief, more doubt that I could ever help make this work. So instead of getting hurt more, I'm just going to say goodbye.

Say something, I'm giving up on you.
And I'm sorry that I couldn't get to you.
And anywhere, I would have followed you.
Oh-oh-oh-oh say something, I'm giving up on you.

Say something, I'm giving up on you.
Say something...

And yet, even after all the hurt, all the anguish, I repeat myself just one last time. I still hold out hope that I can somehow, someway, get a positive response...

While I relate to this song on a level in my marriage primarily, I've been thinking that this is much like my friendships sometimes. I'd venture to say, this pops up in almost any relationship of any sort. People we love sometimes don't realize how much we crave their interaction, their affection or their support in our lives and we just cry out in angst for someone to say something, anything, where we don't feel alone. It can be heightened by social media, where we can have so many "friends" yet feel so alone at home.

But as Christmas rolls around and it heightens our sensitivity to our social relationships, I think this song touches a much deeper level of need that people are seeking. In reality, we are looking for unconditional love. Yet, we are seeking it from humans whom are incapable of it.

Now we have all heard that God loves us. But it's a ton easier to believe that God exists rather than believe that an all powerful being cares about me and my going-ons personally. It's hard to believe that he cares about my thoughts, my hopes, my dreams, my fears. It's hard to believe that he's as interested in hearing about my day at work as he is about orphans in Africa.

But that's the truth. And yet, sometimes it's so hard to feel that love. It's so hard to feel it and believe it, especially in the hardest and most painful circumstances. It's at that point that we yell out, "Say something!" to God, hoping that we get a burning bush or a parting of the sea to show us his power. We doubt. We say I would have followed you. Yet because I cannot feel you or see any inkling of your interaction with me, I'm giving up on you.

Maybe you have had this kind of interaction with God. Now, Christmas is just a reminder of that struggle with God and the feelings of being alone. But what you have to realize is that during a storm, all you can see are the clouds and the thunder and lightning. It gets really dark and dangerous as the storm builds and starts dumping water everywhere.

When I went running the other day, it was raining at the beginning. But after an hour or so of running through the rain and the cold, the rain stopped, the clouds moved and the sun came out. That got me thinking. Just because it's storming doesn't mean the sun isn't there. It's just hidden. Get in a plane (if it's safe) and pop up through the clouds and it's there. Shining as ever, giving a warm glow. In a life storm, all you may see are the dark and rainy parts. The lighting may frighten you and the thunder may be loud, but God's still there, behind the storm. He will never leave you. The song we may sing in our anguish is, thankfully, not his song.

His song can be found in 2 Timothy chapter 2:
"If we died with him, we will also live with him.
If we endure, we will also reign with him.
If we deny him, he will also deny us.
If we are unfaithful, he remains faithful, since he cannot deny himself."

God will always remain faithful, even if we say goodbye to him due to our unbelief. He is love. He is grace. He came to Earth on Christmas to bring you hope that you are not alone in the storm. You are not alone in your struggle or your anguish. You do not have the bear the burdens of your destructive behavior you have now. God came to give himself as a gift to the world. It's like a present under the tree. It's been paid for and wrapped, all you have to do is accept it for your own.

If Jesus were to rewrite some of this song, I think he would say
Say something, I'm coming to you.
I love you and I give my life for you.
Anywhere, I'm always with you.
Say something, yet I'm not giving up on you.

When Doubt Creeps In

It's been a rough couple of weeks.

Nothing drastically bad has happened. I just have had small things happen over the last few weeks. But we all know that these small things can build up and become big monsters in no time.

First small things that have happened have been with Redeemed. In this case it's things not happening. Churches backing out on us coming to talk to them, people flaking out on things they committed to, etc. I was really excited about some of these things happening and the fact that they didn't' work out really bummed me out.

Second thing that has been happening is kinda good. Jared and I started going through Financial Peace together. We are not in financial crisis by any standard. However, we have learned a whole bunch. Yet, when we talk about things that need to get paid for or things that we want to do and we can't afford them, it's another small let down. Can I survive without participating in the Turkey Trot this year? Sure I can. Can we survive without eating out? Absolutely. And we probably will be better off without it. But when it seems all my husband worries about when we go out is the bottom line of "how much is this going to cost us," it really makes time together a bummer. We've since discussed this and make an agreement on how to change it (which is why I'm ok with telling whoever reads this about this conflict in my marriage). What's bumming me out though is that Jared and I have had several talks recently. Really deep ones. We've talked out so many things recently and I think we have reached a new level of understanding each other. I just sometimes feel like I am a bad wife.

This leads into the third thing that happened. Jared turned 25! I was so pumped for him. He was getting new shirts, boots for work, tons of birthday cards and tons of money (yay!) that I hoped made him feel special. However, I wasn't able to really do anything this year. This is a big deal for me because I usually am scheming a month out on surprises and fun things to do. But this year, I didn't want to spend that much money and I didn't have the time to devote to it like I have in the past. Add in Jared had to work on his birthday and all I could really do was tell him happy birthday and smile, and hopefully go to a restaurant he liked (which didn't happen either). To see the disappointment on his face made me feel like the worst person ever.

As a personality that bases most of my value on results, I feel pretty let down. I have many doubts right now that have been playing in the back of my head. I'm a terrible wife. I am not qualified enough to lead an anti-human trafficking organization. I'm not a good friend to those I love. I'm terrible with money. All my insecurities have come creeping up and causing me to doubt everything.

So the question is, what do I do with the doubt? What do I do with the insecurity and the heartache and the anxiety? As passionate as a person I am, my highs are really high yet my lows can be all-consuming.

So today, I broke out my first love, music. I pulled out the guitar my parents lovingly bought me for Christmas a few years ago and I found myself having my own mini-worship time. It's been forever since I played and I was surprised at how much my fingers remembered where to go and how steady I was able to keep my strumming. I love my guitar and the tone matches my voice amazingly. After revisiting some of my old favorites I used to play when I led worship, I decided to teach myself a new song. The first song that came to mind was "Oceans" by Hillsong.

The first time I heard this song, I was at church alone. Jared was out at work and we had just had a disagreement. It's crazy how you can be in a crowd of people and feel so isolated. I felt so alone. When they played this song I cried my eyes out. The words in the bridge just pierced my heart.

"Spirit lead me where my trust is without borders
Let me walk upon the waters
Wherever You would call me
Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander
And my faith will be made stronger
In the presence of my Savior"

I have asked God to use me and call me to places that people have never been to yet. I've asked for him to teach me how to love him more and rely on him for everything. As I was teaching myself how to play this song today I realized I'm in that place right now. I'm stretching and growing. God is the only one who is going to take my ministry, my marriage and my relationships and make them into the beauty God designed them to be.

As a results oriented person, I realized that what I have to do is just rest in God. Do my part and then rest it in his hands. And when doubt creeps in, all I can do is sing this chorus to him.

"I will call upon Your Name
Keep my eyes above the waves
My soul will rest in Your embrace
I am Yours and You are mine"

I find that so comforting to know that if everything goes south, if everything crumbles, if everything just falls apart, God still loves me, still has a plan for me. I'm not just a pawn that is thrown out when I'm used, I'm cherished and I am loved. God loves me just the same has he loves everyone. He loves me the same way he loves everyone all the way back to Adam and Eve.

So I don't know what else to say but I hope that in my vulnerability, in my openness and at my low points, God can speak to you and let you know that the same goes for you. When doubt creeps in and you have those questions, know that you are loved no matter the outcome.



Hillsong United - Oceans (Live) from Hillsong Church on Vimeo.

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!

Musings

Hello everyone. Happy Monday (and yes, that is a legitimate thing to say. You CAN be happy on a Monday)!

I am lacking in any one big thing to share so I instead, am going to expound on a couple of small things I've had rolling around in my head. I hope they help you. :)

1. Life is always going to be crazy. What changes is the type of crazy and how much. What we can do however, is learn to keep it at a minimum or embrace it for it's fullest potential. Take Bilbo Baggins for example. He was offered a choice to sit on his behind in Bag End or to go on a journey. No matter what choice he made, we find out what kind of hobbit he was. But with the latter, we get an inspiring story of perseverance, loyalty and courage that has inspired generations. Imagine the Hobbit if he would have stayed. We would have had a short book and none of the Lord of the Rings.

2. Stop picking at scabs. We go through life and because of the chaos, we get hurt. We get some scabs. For example, I got scratched by a cat at my in law's house and I have a small cut on my arm now. It's been there for a week and now starts to itch. However, if I keep picking at it like I have, it will take even longer to heal much less bleed all over the place. If I do that with my mental or spiritual scars, I keep picking at them, bringing up the raw feelings again by thinking about them a lot, they will take longer to heal and will leave a more lasting scar.

3. What you put in is what you get out. What I eat is going to directly affect my performance while running. What I think about is like food and is going to directly affect my actions. When I feel something, I need to stop and think, "Why am I feeling this." Then pray. Then meditate on God's answer. The most important step is action. Why would I learn something from God and then not put it into action?

4. Don't undervalue hard work. Many people in my generation try to find the easy way to things. What they don't realize is that you often never get to the best things in life by trying to find short cuts. Some of the best places to see in the world require hours spent uncomfortably traveling. Fitness is never achieved through sitting on a couch. Without the hard work, you will never appreciate the end result or learn what you learn along the journey.

5. Don't wait for tomorrow. I just finished teaching my 5th graders who are about to become 6th graders. I had them write down their dreams and aspirations for their lives. Thing is, when you look at what they wrote down (learning a new language, helping people, learning how to take care of animals, becoming a better student, athlete, etc) I was showing them that they don't have to wait until they are "older" to do any of these. God gave them life now and they can make a difference now, no matter their age. Same goes with us. We shouldn't wait for the "opportune moments." It will never come and you will have wasted all that time that you were given.

Then I was looking through my Pinterest and I was reminded about some things that I really loved.

I think this is so true in my marriage. I hope I show Jared that I love him every day.



This is me with my friends. :)


Stop trying to be someone else. God made you, you. No one else! You never know who wants to be you!


Yes!

Our God is amazing. I hope to do this someday! Like...Alaska!

Last day booster...read Romans 5. It's my favorite!

God gave you today so let's make it amazing!

Marathons and bombs do not go together!

So I woke up this morning to my dog greeting me. It's such a wonderful thing to wake up to a dog AND a husband! In the past this doesn't usually happen!

As I got ready for the day I realized that the Boston Marathon was on this morning! Jared and I had spent a good deal of time last night talking about Boston as we were thinking of taking one last quick trip before our lives went into overdrive busy. We were looking at the map, picking out things to see, where to stay, things to do...normal touristy planing stuff. Naturally the Boston Marathon came up in conversation as we are training for our first marathon.

It was awe inspiring this morning to watch these athletes run faster than I've ever sprinted for miles and miles and miles! Even though you were looking at the same camera angle for minutes at a time, just watching the people run and jockey for position, thinking through the tactical and psychological parts of the race were thrilling! I was rooting for the American girls and I am really excited for their 4th and 6th place finishes!

Jared and I then went on with our day. We worked out, took care of our dog who's got an upset stomach, etc and then find out that minutes before I looked at my iPad's news, there was a bomb at the same race we were watching just hours ago. I was on the verge of tears watching runners who were running such a great feat either not be able to finish or be injured before they got across the finish line. I thought about my own upcoming marathon. Would the same thing happen at mine? It's always a possibility. Would I go even if that was a possibility? Will people run the Boston Marathon or any other race next year?

And before I go on, I know nothing I say will probably make any difference. I don't expect people to listen to me. There isn't anything I can say that will ease the pain of those who lost loved ones. They are going to have a long road through greif along side those who were injured and have a long road through recovery. The mental and psychological trauma will take time and patience to get through and it will be hard.

Unfortunately, as a society, we are not a stranger to terrorism. Nothing I say will make a difference, change what happened, or help with what road lies before those people involved. But for me and those that are mentally sorting through the unnecessary violence that happens in our culture, this is my response. Terrorism is meant to make us fearful. Fear will make us do life different. That different life will not be the full life God has planned for us. We will constantly live negative, paranoid, looking for someone to blame as we life in our unforgiveness and fear.

As the victim of a violent crime, I've had to deal with those thoughts and process through them in my own way. But as I've become a runner, I've learned that runners are the types of people that push through pain. They hear their bodies say, "Stop!" and allow their minds to push the body further. They accomplish feats that inspire us! They defy limits and say, "I can do the impossible." That's why we love sports. That's why comebacks in competitive games are some of the best moments in sports history. What looks impossible becomes possible and gives us hope for the rest of our lives.

So the answer to my questions? Will people run the race next year? My immediate response was yes. Because we are not a people who quit at the point of pain but run through it. We don't disregard it, but we fight through it. We run in remembrance of pain but also in the remembrance of the victory over pain.

God has victory over death and He is the one who will give us the strength to run through the pain.

Joy in the Unlikely Places

Hi friends. It's been a while since I've posted anything. I wanted to write after our Biggest Loser 10K and tell you all about it. But I waited a week to get the pictures. That week ended up being extremely busy. So hence I'm coming to you now, story in hand, two weeks later haha.

Jared and I just celebrated one year of wedded awesomeness. Honestly, we look at each other and go, "Wow. This is amazing. We are best friends, a great team and I never get sick of being with you!" So to celebrate God's blessings we went out to Austin and what do we do? We run a 10K! Only us crazy people!

But seriously, we got to the end of the trip and asked, "What was our favorite part?" Our answer was...the Biggest Loser run. It wasn't the most organized event we have ever attended, but it was just FUN. Pictures below:

He's such a stud!

Sprinting to the end!

I make myself smile because I remember how excited I was!

Us being...us.

Biggest Loser Scale!

When we got home we instantly got into craziness. Jared had an interview in Dallas, so we had the mad dash up there and we were so busy. Then the next week came up and it seemed as busy as the last one. I took a week off running to recoup from a running strain then started into a strength training regimen. So I didn't really run for two weeks.

Let me tell you, it was the grumpiest two weeks I think I've ever been. I thought it was just because I was stressed out. After all, everything seemed to be like paddling upstream. Besides work and volunteering, I don't know what is coming in the future for Jared's job and I was frustrated that I wasn't seeing him much.

But today, I realized my lack of running and decided I should probably go if I wanted to keep up my endurance. As I started to get ready, I started to get excited. I was HAPPY to go running, even in the rain! Duchess was especially excited to go running (if only I caught her tearing around the apartment on video)! We got out there and I was saying, "I missed this!" I only went two miles, but those were some of the best two miles EVER.

So what does this say? I think that I have actually found something that makes me unashamedly joyful. It is totally unglamorous wearing no makeup and getting sopping wet as you run in the rain. But honestly, I loved every bit of it. I was shocked to see how happy I was in those pictures from our race. But I have found that running can completely change my mood for the better and can actually help me process though things in a healthy God-given manner.

What makes laugh even more is how scared I was to train at the beginning. I was terrified of trying to run two minutes straight! I have been faithful and now have an activity that makes me feel truly alive.

There are always things in our lives that we get scared of doing. Opening up to people, being honest, having that hard conversation, or trying something new. God constantly asks us to do things out of our comfort zone so that we learn to rely on Him rather than our own strength. That freaks me out! But I am taking a page out of the Biggest Loser. Instead of looking at the issue from a standpoint of, "What if I can't do what God wants me to do?" we need to understand that we are right! We can't! But if God has asked us to do something, nothing is impossible to God! We can then ask ourselves, "What can God do through this because He can?"

The answer to that my friends is 1 Corinthians 2:9:

'But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him."'

Still running Across America. Didn't make much progress the last few weeks but here I am today:

Over 200 miles down!

Dicipline

This week has been a blessing and a challenge all at once. Jared and I have finally gotten some time to actually sit and enjoy talking together without too much chaos (when Duchess is around, there is always chaos). But just as that small moment passed, it was gone again with the whirlwind of work and things to do.

It's also been difficult to find the motivation to go running. I'm sorry, but 45 minutes is a long time! Sunday we were exhausted from the weekend. But we still went running...through the Christmas lights! We went through the neighborhood and saw all the pretty houses all decorated. Tuesday was the same. We went a little bit on a different route, which ended up going right through sprinkelers, but we had fun and ran the entire way.

Yesterday was difficult. I woke up not feeling well (and we all know how little it takes for me to not feel well) but I needed to get some work done and still be on time for my commitment for Redeemed. So my run got pushed back to after work...9:30 pm. UGGGGGG. It's too late to go running outside so that left me doomed to the treadmill.

I seriously considered not going. After all, I was tired, hungry and hurt from the day before. But I knew that if I didn't do this run, my run on Friday was going to be that much harder. Plus, I was stressed out about work, so a run was what I needed to get all that negative energy out.

So 45 minutes later on the treadmill I finally ended my run. Not going to lie, it was a different experience. I ran the ENTIRE WAY. I out ran people that started after me. There was a person who came, ran beside me for 10 minutes, got off, came back and ran again. When they left, I was still running. My biggest obsticle while running wasn't my body (for the first time)...it was my mind. I was SO BORED. But I found distraction between all 10 TV's in front of me and jammed out to my music until the very end. When I was done, I felt better than when I started. I felt like I had accomplished something. Plus, I realized that I had become "that person" from my days in high school. I would go to the YMCA, see people jogging for a long time on the treadmill and I could barely do two minutes. I would get so jealous of them. Now I had become what I had previously envied. All it took was some hard work and dicipline.

Many times in our spiritual walk with Christ, we tend to judge our walk to everyone elses. I used to envy people who were "more spiritual" on the outside than me. I still sometimes envy people who lead large ministries and have more resources than I have. But what we have to realize is that we all have access to the same Savior. He wants us to all expeirence His grace, His love and His amazing plan He has for us on Earth. But instead of working so hard to make whatever we want to happen on our own, we should be working hard to get to know Him on a personal level. We should acknowledge that He knows the inner depths of our beings, no matter how hard we try to hide our deepest secrets. We should try to get to know as much as we can the depth and breath of His love. Because even a little glimpse of that can change our lives.

Why do we memorize scripture, read our Bibles or go to church? They aren't a checklist to say "I'm spiritual." They are obedience tools, or a "training plan" that God gives us so that we can grow to be more like Him. That's what we are training for right? Our whole exsistance is to glorify His love to the world around us that so desparately needs it. Plus, we feel so much better after a mini talk with God, kind of like we feel after we have a good workout.

So the next time you are tempted to not go to church, read your Bible or spend time with Him, remember that it's not a "have to." Rather, it's a "get to." We get to "train" our brains to know Him better and live out His love in our lives. The more you obediently follow the training program He's given us, the more He is going to reveal Himself in your life.

Then fasten your seat belts kids. Once that happens, it's going to be a wild ride.

Defeats and Victories

We all have probably heard or have experienced the fact that when working toward something great long term you are going to have good days and bad days. Times where you are on top of the world and times at the bottom of the pit.

Yesterday was a bottom of the pit day. I had a good day at work but my run was less than inspiring. It was a 45 minute run. Funny how you never know how long 45 minutes is until you have to run it. Add to that we ran it on a treadmill. I love the fact that I have a gym membership (Thanks Mom!) but it was more to use the bikes, pools and free weights. Not the treadmill. But the weather and the time of night forced us to run four miles on the hamster wheels and halfway through Jared and I were both like, "I hate running!"

So today I had to make a resolution. I would go running at the park with my dog at 1:30 pm. No excuses. Not only was it a beautiful day, but I experienced something I've only read about...the runner's high. Three minutes in Steller Kart came on the playlist with "We Shine," my dog was so happy, the sun was shining and I was like, "Praise God for legs and lungs!" I maintained a 10:25 min/mile pace all 30 minutes (that's zooming for me) and even pushed harder at the end. I was saying "Howdy" to everyone I passed while keeping Duchess from chasing the squirrels. Plus, after the run, everyone just seemed nicer. Maybe it's due to my overenthusiastic "Hi!" to the post office guy and frozen yogurt lady. But, I got free vanilla yogurt for Duchess! What a deal!

All this to say I think running just makes the world a nicer place. Plus it teaches me that practice makes perfect and I shouldn't get discouraged by one run...or one plan gone wrong, or anything in life. Gods got my back because I'm all His, and that's all I need to worry about!

Now if you will excuse me, I need to go soak my very sore muscles in Epsom salt, use the foam roller and drink a vanilla protein shake...

Running Across America...still in Virginia.

Back in the Saddle

Hello everyone! Sorry I have been MIA the past few days. I had a good reason though. We went camping! For a full and funny recap of our adventures you can check out our video here:

As far as running has been going, the one we did at the camp site WORE ME OUT. We went three minutes running followed by two minutes walking for 50 minutes. We covered four miles through the trails! It was very fun but I was exhausted by the end. I mentally was in a bad place because I was thinking, "If this is this hard and I still have breaks, then how am I going to be able to run for 30 minutes straight?"

What I failed to remember was we went for a three mile hike geocaching before that! No wonder we were so tired! Plus, the 30 minute run is a week from now. I'm not there yet. What happens sometimes is we look at something way down the road and get overwhelmed and we don't feel ready for it. The truth is, we aren't ready for it because we are not there yet!

So when I got around to running today I didn't have a defeatist attitude. I said, "If I could run the last run, and didn't die, I can run this run!" My verse for today was "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." And you know what happened? I did it! I wasn't even completely spent!

This truth was evident in my life today as I went to church this morning and ran the children's department. There are so many moving parts to my ministry and I want to build my team as well as build my students! Things have happened over the last couple of weeks that stressed me out and nothing I did seemed to make a helpful difference. I prayed about it a lot on our camping trip and boy what a difference it made! Many of the things I had been working on finally paid off and conversations I needed to have finally happened! All praise goes to God because it was His timing and His appointments. Never underestimate the work that God is doing through you.

It's amazing to see progress in your life when you have been working toward a goal. Remember when we were kids and we never felt like we were growing? That is, until we stepped up to the kitchen counter and we could suddenly reach all the cookies our moms were making! Life is the same way! We never see ourselves growing until we get in a situation that normally would have been daunting. However, because of the work that God has done in you, we know that we can overcome it! I encourage all of you not only in your running or training for whatever activity you want to do, but in life as well, to take an honest look back and see what you have accomplished. I won't run a marathon in just two months, but I will train. With hard work over a period of time, I can do great things.

Especially if it is Christ who strengthens and guides me!

Rainy days

Today was one of those days where you just sing to yourself, 'Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...'

Not just because today was rough but because we literally ran in the rain and it was bordering on swimming (in my over exaggerated mind)!

Ran 3 miles and added to the running across America mileage.