Fridays are for… Newspaper Articles
October 12, 2007
Here’s the weekly column I write for the Canyon Lake (TX) Times-Guardian:
“Running the Race”
By the time you read this, I will have run in my first race since 1983. Those of you who have seen my 250 pound plus ex-football player frame are probably wondering, “What are you thinking? Why, you could have a heart attack or a stroke and die!”
And, had this race taken place a year ago, you would have been right. At that point, I was not taking good care of myself at all. But, a lot has changed since November, 2006, when I had some sort of episode that may well have been a mini-stroke. That was a major physical wake-up call for me!
You see, I started exercising almost every day. In the beginning, I could barely huff and puff my way over a couple of our fairly steep Hill Country up-and-downs at a slow walk. But, I kept going. And, over the months, I lengthened my daily route and picked up the pace.
Then, a few months ago, I got faced with the idea of taking part in a 5 kilometer race. Frankly, I had no problem with the distance at all. I had worked my way up to walking a 4.6 mile per day course. The approximately 3.1 miles in a 5K was a “piece of cake” length-wise.
But, if I was going to be in such a race, I wanted to be able to run it, not just walk—even if it was a very brisk walk. So, I made it a goal to get myself in good enough running condition to do just that.
That was easier said than done. Carrying the amount of weight I do, there is quite a bit a pounding on your thighs and knees. Fortunately, as an athlete, I never sustained any injuries with lingering effects to those parts of my body. So, my only problem was getting past the soreness from getting used to running again after all these years and forcing myself to keep going through a little over three mile run.
I am thankful to say that, in the last couple of weeks before the race, I finally arrived at that point. My legs had stopped throbbing and were no longer sore. And, I had developed enough stamina to keep running from the start to the end of the three mile course.
Now, there is a part of me that really wants to put things on cruise control at this point. After all, I have gotten myself into good enough shape to be confident that I will be able to run the entire race. And, by training in the hills, I should do fairly well on this relatively flat course.
But, there is another part of me that wants to keep pushing these last few days until the race and be prepared to not just finish, but actually run a fairly decent time. Specifically, I can run my three mile course in 54 minutes and I’m aiming to finish on Saturday under 50 minutes.
Is that realistic for me? It very much remains to be seen. But, I’m going to give it my best shot and see what my 58-year-old body can do.
How does this outlook translate into the spiritual realm? Listen to the Apostle Paul’s words about the attitude with which Christians should approach running the race that is the Christian life: “Run in such a way that you may win. Now everyone who competes exercises self-control in everything. However, they do it to receive a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one” (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).
If you are a Christian, are you “in shape” to run the race that is living for Christ every day? The Lord definitely expects you to be. If you’re not, it may require a process of starting to read the Bible a little daily, then more and more, and praying a little every day, then more over time, and telling other people about Christ consistently, and the like, in other important areas of the Christian life? But, like my improvement toward running this 5K, it can be done. And, while all I will get out of this race is some satisfaction, you can have the incredible spiritual joy of hearing the Lord say: “Well done, good and faithful servant?”
Coming Monday: The Holy Spirit and the Southern Baptist Convention Today (XVI): “I HAVE a Dream (Continued)”
