Never would have dreamed it...

So, I’ve mentioned a little of my running in the past.  Well, we finished our No Boundaries program Memorial.  I’d like to say it ended with a bang, but really it ended with the heat, miserable heat.  I live in the south, and this year it seems as though the unbearable heat has made an early entrance.  It made for a horribly hot Memorial Day race.  Let me back up a little, in my mind, I’ve wanted to be a runner for a while now, but it just seemed like a thing those skinny runner people did, not something I could do.  My cousin talked me into joining a program called No Boundaries 10 weeks ago that was supposed to work us up to a 5K.  This 10 weeks has been semi life changing in a way.  Here’s one of my secrets, I’m a little lazy.  Not so much lazy in that I don’t work hard, but lazy in that I don’t necessarily want to give something my all, b/c what if I do and I don’t attain the goal, or fail.  That’s too much for my little brain to handle, so I played basketball and didn’t ever shoot lest I miss, I played softball and tried to request the easiest spots again lest I miss the fly ball.  That’s the way I’ve done things.  School and work have never really been an issue, b/c  those came easy for me, but the stuff that was hard, I just didn’t really try and used that as an excuse.  Running doesn’t allow that, I guess there are “good” runners, but runners come in all shapes and sizes, all paces and speeds.  I’m never going to win a race, but I can beat my prior times, I can set a goal time and meet it, I can succeed. But all that requires training and self-dicipline…again things that don’t come naturally to me.  So, I go to God, and ask for help on the quest to be a runner, and I’m reminded of a verse a Sunday school teacher brought to my attention a few years ago… 2 Timothy 1:7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline… Power and self-discipline, two things I really need to make this commitment and overcome my natural laziness. So, I’ve completed the 5K, though not at any breakneck speed, it was over 5 minutes faster than the one I did last year with no preparations, and now I’ve let another friend talk me into something I said I wasn’t going to do… a Half Marathon!!  I’m terrified and excited at the same time.  I am so lucky to have a great group to run with a lot of mornings.  They truly are what gets this night owl out of bed at 5:30 am to beat the heat.  I’ll share more as we go along, but just wanted to let you in on the new goal!