For the mathematicians out there, that’s right, I skipped a few days.
Last week, we were blessed enough to have friends in town, their visit coincided with what would’ve been my 8th wedding anniversary. When they left, the normal sadness around guests leaving was compounded with the grief of remembering yet another anniversary without my beloved. My training stalled, and my intentional eating healthier was teetering. Come Saturday morning, it took every ounce of resolve I could muster to get out and get running.
The lady in my ear, Erin is her name, on the little running app I use, keeps reminding me that this endeavor is a mental game. It’s funny, because that’s how I felt Saturday morning. The 2 paths in front of me were: wake up, make an excuse, and say that I’d start anew on Monday. Or, get my butt up and do something that honors God. I got up and chose Him.
My bff Erin also suggested to have a mantra, something to repeat to myself when things get hard. This mantra talk coincided with a bible study that really, really introduced me to Joshua. Joshua was the guy that led the people of Israel into the promised land after Moses died. The thing is, he was more than that. Joshua was Moses’ assistant before he evolved into a leader. A really amazing part of the story that I neglected to focus on previously was that Joshua walked with Moses and hung out while Moses communed with the Lord for 40 days. 40 days. Joshua didn’t have a phone to scroll on, he just straight up waited. Old School waited, he didn’t even have a book. Man, what steadfastness! Any who… me. I am NO Joshua. But I wanna be.
I want to apply discipline to my life in such a way that honors Christ. I want to be steadfast, and even though I stumble, rely on the power of the Lord to get up, and keep going. That’s how I got to my mantra, “Be strong and courageous, the Lord is with you”, and guess what? Erin, my bff, was right! I finished my run on Saturday. This morning my official 3rd training week on my running app took off, and the task before me intimidated the crap out of me, but I repeated my mantra, and it helped.
BTW, I did have the urge to vomit, but I held it together like a champ.
The journey I’m choosing to travel is a long one, and thanks to my 48 year-old knees, a painful one, but I want to give God my body, my time, my energy and I don’t want to continue to feed the beast of laziness. I fed that beast too long.
So, how’s the progress: 2.02 miles, average pace: 16 minutes, 15 seconds. Blood pressure is normal, and I’ve added foods high in magnesium. Next addition will be turmeric, because of the anti-inflammatory properties (crappy knees).
For those curious of where my mantra came from, it’s a shorter version of Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Joshua was told multiple times to be “strong and courageous” by the Lord because he was doing something really challenging. I’m not leading thousands of people into the promised land, but I’m as stubborn as all of Israel roaming around in that desert.