Matthew 17:20

"I tell you the truth, if you had faith even as small as the mustard seed, you could say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it would move. Nothing would be impossible."

If I were to list the times I thought something was impossible, then I'd certainly be here all day.

And tomorrow.

And quite possibly the next day.

Take this running thing for instance.  Two years ago, I had just started working out.  Running for me was really an impossibility, but in late February of 2011, a friend talked me into the McLeod Health 5K in Florence.  I went from one mile to two.  I was assured that not everyone runs those races, and I learned this was true.  My greatest achievement in running was that I finished a 5K.  That's 3.11 miles, folks.

The following year, as I placed 8th in my division for the same 5K, my athletic trainer buddies told me, "You could have done the 10K."  So what do I do?

I sign up for a half marathon.  

Does anyone see the skip in there?

And you know what?  I finished it.

By the end of 2013, I will run one 5K, two 10Ks, and two half marathons.  And I am seriously contemplating the Disney Marathon in 2014.  That, my friends, is 26.2 miles.  

So, how does one jump from the sofa to 26.2 miles in four years time?  Persistence.  People have always told me I was too stubborn for my own good.  And faith.  When I rounded the miles and my iliotibial band syndrome (ITBS) was kicking in, I was ready to give up.  

I'm not going to lie, the ITBS still bothers me.  I invested in one of these:

 

and although it hurts like the devil to use it, I have a lot less pain than I used to.  Stretching helps, as well as listening to my body and slowing down when I need to.

I had faith, though.  I knew that because I had prayed for strength.  In my case, my body is a mountain, and the faith will bring me to and through 26.2 miles.

Of course, I still have the issue of running a total of  41.75 miles in races first.

Do Everything you Do. . .

Yeah, if you are a Steven Curtis Chapman fan right now, then the song is stuck in your head.  You are welcome.  But for those of you who don't know it, the lyrics are:

You're picking up toys on the living room floor for the 15th time today
Matching up socks
Sweeping up lost cheerios that got away
You put a baby on your hip
Color on your lips and head out the door
While I may not know you,
I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes, does it matter at all?
Well let me remind you, it all matters just as long
As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you,
Cause he made you,
To do
Every little thing that you do
To bring a smile to His face
Tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

Maybe you're that guy with the suit and tie
Maybe your shirt says your name
You may be hooking up mergers
Cooking up burgers
But at the end of the day
Little stuff
Big stuff
In between stuff
God sees it all the same
While I may not know you
I bet I know you
Wonder sometimes, does it matter at all?
Well let me remind you, it all matters just as long
As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you,
Cause he made you
To do
Every little thing that you do
To bring a smile to His face
Tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And everything you do

Maybe you're sitting in math class
Or maybe on a mission in the Congo
Or maybe you're working at the office
Singing along with the radio
Maybe you're dining at a 5-star
Or feeding orphans in the Myanmar
Anywhere and everywhere that you are
Whatever you do
It all matters
So do what you do
Don't ever forget

To do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you,
Cause He made you
To do
Every little thing that you do
To bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace

As you do everything you do to the glory of the One who made you,
Cause he made you
To do
Every little thing that you do
To bring a smile to His face
And tell the story of grace
With every move that you make
And every little thing you do

In every little thing you do
In every little thing you do 

This song matches 1 Corinthians 10:31:  So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. (ESV)

So, what does this have to do with running?  Everything.  Every time I step out on the road, on the treadmill, down a trail, I am thankful and give glory to God.  Just two seemingly short years ago, I couldn't run a half a mile.  Today, I ran 8.  Just one year ago, I would have never dreamed of running more than a 5K.  Today, I've run one half marathon, am registered for two more and the Cooper River Bridge Run.  Although I'd love to say it's been because of my inner strength, and pat mysel froyally on the back for it, I know the truth is this:  I've been given the strength to do this all by God.  Sometimes it's just through a Bible verse I turn to.  Often it's because of a feeling of peace I get as I am praying.  And I can think of three times while I was running when I could have given up and the next song was appropriate.  Today was such a day.

Coming up on mile 6, which was uphill, I was very close to my starting point.  One quarter of a mile and I could have been finished.  It was oh-so-tempting to stop.  Then LaCrae gets to this line:

I know the Truth is hitting home like Barry Bonds
Yeah my God runs the streets like a marathon, yes
I'm a believer, yes, I rep the Kingdom
They ask me where to find the Lord, they ain't never seen Him
Homie God ain't got no longitude and latitude
He's on another level you can't put a ladder to
And gon' check him in, before they close the do' (door)
You got that rehab, this is the over dose
Oh, how I want to go through life as God does.  How I want to be the one who takes care of herself in the way the Lord intended.  I want to be the person who runs the streets beside God like a marathon.

At mile 6, when I wanted to give up, I did something interesting.  I ran a negative split.

And I didn't give up.

The mundane, the everyday, the boring in life all has a purpose.  I've decided to blog my way through my running because I want people to see how everything can be done to the glory of God.

I'm reminded here of the shorter catechism:
Q.What is the chief end of man?

A. Man's chief end is to glorify God, [a] and to enjoy him for ever. [b]

[a]. Ps. 86:9; Isa. 60:21; Rom. 11:36; I Cor. 6:20; 10:31; Rev. 4:11

[b]. Ps. 16:5-11; 144:15; Isa. 12:2; Luke 2:10; Phil. 4:4; Rev. 21:3-4

Several interesting things have occured regarding my upcoming Disney Princess race. 

1.  I ran a personal best for the 10K today.  This is very exciting.  I ran a bit differently.  With the exception of a couple of times, my run/walk split was 0.5 mile run/0.25 mile walk.  Typically it's a 0.25 mile split.  This, of course, speeded me up a bit.

 2.  I did this run with a new pair of Mizunos.  They did not hurt my feet at all, and I'm still dealing with blackened toenails for the Myrtle Beach mini.  These are Wave Precision 13s and they were awesome!  No blisters and no further injury to my toes today.

3.  My husband registered me for the Royal Family 5K the day before the Princess Half Marathon.  I am WALKING this one, so I can be of encouragement to a dear friend and so that I can sport this costume:

I had originally intended to wear this for the Half Marathon, but I think that it would be best not to do this for the half.  I am going to wear it for the Divas in April, but I'll be safer with something else for a half marathon where I fully intend to PR

4.  And speaking of the half. . .here's that outfit:

Gosh, I hope it's not colder than like 40 degrees or I'll need to rethink things.

Either way, I'm down to 70 days until I leave for Florida.  I can't wait!