RUNNING WITH FAITH
Theme: Running the Race; Fighting the Good Fight
At one point upon my faith journey, I was running 6 miles 6 days a week. What was I training for? You ask. I was training spiritually, learning how to persevere in times of trouble. I loved it! It was hard, but I loved it. Now, I don’t run fast. I don’t even time myself. I started to get into the timing thing, but then I about drove myself nuts thinking I had to get faster and better and faster and better. All of a sudden, my spiritual training became a flesh mess focused on physical accomplishment. I got side tracked for about a week, and then I stopped the madness and just got back to running 6 miles 6 days a week, focusing on Scripture and letting go of the measurement of speed and time. How quickly we can become distracted from the task at hand.
I share this only to share that my teenage daughter, Faith, asked me if I wanted to go running with her. Now, she’s a gazelle when it comes to running. Or, should I say a cheetah? She’s a natural runner and she’s fast. Plus, she’s 21 years younger than me and her legs are longer than both mine and my husband’s combined. Okay, I exaggerate a little (but not much). Faith was in that stage where she was focusing on independence and how different she was from her mom… a totally normal stage along one’s developmental trajectory. I was praying through giving her the space she needed to individuate and all that jazz. Then, one day she said, “Hey, Mom, do you want to go running with me?”
“What?” I asked. “You know I’m not very fast.”
“I know, Mom, but you can do it; let’s go!” She answered.
“Sure! Let’s go!” I said.
Now, truthfully, I don’t think I felt like running at that exact moment. In fact, I had already done my 6 miles for the day. I had no idea was I was signing up for. More importantly, I was a little worried she’d be 2 miles ahead of me the entire way.
But guess what? I went, I ran, I kept up with her – pretty well, and more importantly, we had a blast! It was a great time of bonding via a lot of heavy big breaths and some giggles along the way. It was so fun.
As I was running, I thanked God for training me spiritually so that I could keep up physically with my daughter. I was thankful for the special time with my daughter that I never could have dreamed of doing had I not been training (spiritually training through running for several weeks). I was thankful to God that He knows what is in our future and He prepares us every step of the way. All we have to do is agree to the training schedule and show up to practice!
Are you going through some “training” right now? How might this devotional help you understand that the sacrifice just may be worth it in the long run?
I’d love to hear from you.
God is good – all the time!
Kristina Seymour loves to encourage and equip women through the Word and through community. She is the author of The Warrior Mom Handbook, The Warrior Mom Leadership Manual, and The Warrior Wife Handbook; they are available at Amazon.com. Kristina's Bible studies are for women who desire to live by faith in the midst of their everyday lives. She has learned that women can't survive on caffeine and animal crackers alone; women in the Word and in community are united and able to stand firm. To learn more about Kristina, please visit her recently founded Share & Company Publishing House http://seymourkristina.wix.