You Might Be a Christian If...

Hopefully, you all had a little fun with the last post. You probably got to make fun of yourself a few times with comments like, "I SO do that!" Maybe you even added a few of your own. (If you did, be sure and comment so we can all enjoy!)

It never ceases to amaze me how different...but how alike runners are. If you need me to prove it to you, just stand at the finish line of a local race. The diversity of runners is amazing. We come in all different shapes and sizes, prefer specific paces and distances, insist on one brand of shoe over all others, hate running indoors or embrace gym memberships for your favorite treadmill...

No matter how different we are, we still have that one common bond as runners. You know that each person you're running with in a race finds time in their crazy schedule to train, whether early in the morning before class, or at night after the kids are in bed. They understand the amazing feeling of accomplishment in crossing a marathon finish line. They can empathize with an injury that forces you to resort to pool running for a month. They don't even expect you to have all of your toenails. Regardless of our personal preferences, we're all runners.

Being a Christian is the same way. We are so different - with differing backgrounds, from numerous countries, converted at different ages, each with unique spiritual gifts and callings on our lives. Just like runners though, we have that eternal bond as brothers and sisters in Christ.

In his first letter to Corinth, Paul points out this very point.

"For as the body is one and has many parts, and all the parts of that body, though many, are one body—so also is Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit. So the body is not one part but many. If the foot should say, "Because I'm not a hand, I don't belong to the body," in spite of this it still belongs to the body. And if the ear should say, "Because I'm not an eye, I don't belong to the body," in spite of this it still belongs to the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But now God has placed the parts, each one of them, in the body just as He wanted. And if they were all the same part, where would the body be? 20 Now there are many parts, yet one body.
So the eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" nor again the head to the feet, "I don't need you!" On the contrary, all the more, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are necessary. And those parts of the body that we think to be less honorable, we clothe these with greater honor, and our unpresentable parts have a better presentation. But our presentable parts have no need [of clothing]. Instead, God has put the body together, giving greater honor to the less honorable, so that there would be no division in the body, but that the members would have the same concern for each other. So if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and individual members of it." (I Corinthians 12:12-27)

There is not a spiritual gift, race, or worship style prefered by God. He views them all as equally important, and they are all needed for a spiritually alive and growing New Testament church.

So don't think that because you don't have a full-time job at a church that God hasn't called you to do His work. Just as running a 5K makes you just as much of a runner as an ultra-marathoner, stacking chairs after the worship service makes you just as much of a servant of Christ as the preacher. In the same way, if you are the one teaching the Bible study, don't think you are more important than the one who greeted participants at the door. (That's just as fake as sneering at someone with a Half Marathon Race Bib in the bathroom before the race's start. You know by mile 18, you're wishing you could switch with them!)

So embrace your spiritual gifts. Ask God to reveal to You how He wants to use you to do His work. Ask for forgiveness if you haven't been using the gifts He has given you, or if you have regarded yourself as more important than others in the church. Then, pray for opportunities to glorify God with the talents and abilities He has given you.

An additional challenge: Ask yourself if you are as easily identified as one of Gof's children as you are as a runner. If you made a list of "You Might Be a Christian If..." including things like love your enemies, turnd the other cheek when wronged, gives cheerfully, loves your neighbor as yourself...how would you measure up? Seek to be more blatant with your Christianity as you are in your love for running.

You Might Be a Runner If...

...You cried more when they discontinued your favorite running shoe than you cried when your last boyfriend broke up with you.

...You have pictures of yourself wearing a plastic bag....multiple pictures...not from the same day

...Your running gear is worth more money than everything else in your closet

...Your friends say they need to train before they can run with you

...You refer to food as "fuel"

...You talk about going for an "easy ten" and people look at you and say, "Ten minutes?".

...You double knot all of your shoes...purely out of habit

...You have tried pretty much every granola, protein, and energy bar out there

...You have a pair of running shoes in the trunk of your car...just in case.

...A gym membership is not an optional financial purchase. It's a neccessity.

...When you arrive at a friend's house for the first time, the first thing you comment on is what a great neighborhood they have to run in.

...You try a new running route and can't wait to get home and get in your car to clock how far you went (even though you can pretty much guess it within 1/10 of a mile)

..You will not stay in a hotel than does not have a good fitness center. (Hey, if it rains, I've got to have options!)

...You know at least 47 ways to prepare oatmeal

..You buy a dog based on his ability to run at your pace.

...The word "fartlek" doesn't make you giggle like a 12-year-old (a college student, maybe!)

...You know which color nail polish best disguises the fact that you don't neccessarily have 10 toenails

...You have literally "run" errands before

...You think a 4-mile walk or a Pilates class is a great way to rest on recovery days

...After you run, you take the phrase, "Wow, you're gross" as a compliment

...You don't have to ask, "Dean who?"

...You have started a conversation with a complete stranger because you can tell from their calves that they are a runner

...Your friends always know if they buy you something that says "Nike" for Christmas, you'll light up more than the Christmas tree

...When someone introduces you, they always follow your name with "who runs marathons" or "who ran twelve miles already this morning"

...BioFreeze has its own special spot in your medicine cabinet

...You keep running out of ponytail holders (Yes...pun intended)

...You would consider trading the diamond tennis bracelet you got for your birthday for a treadmill at home

Stilettos in Quicksand

I love my dad. He makes coffee just the way I like it, always has an encouraging word, rarely misses a question on Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and yells at the TV just as loudly as I do during college football games. He is an incredible resource in most areas of my life....EXCEPT for running. And fashion.

He just doesn't get them. He doesn't understand how I could possibly ENJOY pounding pavement until my feet are numb, waking up at 5 am to train, or sprinting with a 15 grade incline at the gym just to see how long I can take it. He doesn't know that a marathon is not 26 miles. (You run one, and then tell me that 0.2 miles doesn't make a difference!)

Fashion has him equally baffled. He calls my sister's Louis Vuitton bag "the alphabet purse." He thinks COACH sells sports merchandise. And that Guess changes what they sell every week. He just doesn't get it.

That's why his life advice with a running/fashion analogy had such an impact on me. I knew God was speaking through my dad to communicate with me in a way I would understand. There's no way my dad could have given this advice on his own knowledge.

I was sitting in my parent's kitchen. I got a job in pharmaceutical sales, gone to sales school in Indianapolis for six weeks, and bought a three-bedroom condo on my own within three months of graduating college (at the age of 20. I graduated both high school and college a year early.)

In December, my manager told me the company was undergoing a "corporate re-shuffle." Already under conviction that I should have gone to seminary after graduating, I turned down three other positions within the company, took a severence package, enrolled in graduate school at the University of Tennessee, went back to my previous job as a personal trainer, took a volunteer internship position in the student ministry at my dad's church, put my condo on the market, competed for the title of Miss Knoxville, and won. Now, it was back to Miss Tennessee.

In March, I was so tired of wrestling with God about coming to seminary, I scheduled a campus tour of Southwestern. My dad and I came to Texas, I immediately felt at home on the campus, and decided that was where the Lord wanted me to pursue my seminary degree. If I won Miss Tennessee, I would defer a year and enter seminary a year later. If I didn't win, I would move to Texas three weeks after the pageant.

The pageant came, and the crown went to another contestant. The time had come to show Texas that at 5'3" and 110 lbs, it doesn't always have to be bigger to be better in Texas. Or was it time to hold off on the move and take online classes for a year before I took the plunge?

I casually brought up this idea of web-based education with my dad, thinking he would immediately jump on board. I mean, he wouldn't have to watch his little girl move 16 hours away from home. ANY father would be estastic, especially when you're as close as we are.

My dad took a deep breath. "Michelle, how important is picking your running shoes to you?"

"What" I asked. My dad never mentioned running, unless he was telling me that I needed to give my body a break.

"How much time do you spend researching a shoe before you purchase it? And when you find a pair that you like, do you stay loyal to it, waiting for the new one to come out? Or will you just run in any old pair of shoes?" he asked.

"No way!" I said, passionately. "Picking your running shoe is critical to performance. I mean, I have a narrow foot. I can't wear just any shoe that comes in a normal or a wide width. And racing shoes are different from training shoes. Trail running shoes are different. And this!" I said proudly, lifting up my right foot for him to admire my 2006 Nike Air Pegasus. "This is the best running shoe out there. It's the only one I buy."

"So you consider the terrain too?" he asked.

"Of course."

"Does the distance matter for your pace?" Now, he was smirking a little bit. I hadn't quite figured out where he was going, but he was definately going somewhere. "If you're going to do a long run, do you start slower than if you're going to do a shorter run?"

"Absolutely. If you start out too fast for a long run, you'll never make it. And if you're too slow for a short run, you won't get a good workout," I shot back. Two could play this "Know-It-All" Game.

"Well, all I'm going to tell you is that your life would be a lot smoother if you gave it as much thought and consideration as running."

Yeah, I'm sure that's all you're going to tell me. "Go on," I said.

"When you run, you have a plan, and you stick to it - how far you'll run, what you'll wear, how fast you'll go. In life, you try to run a marathon at a 5K pace without stopping to think about the terrain you will come across or what shoes you should wear - which is why half of the time - you end up sprinting in stilettos on quicksand."

What? When did he learn what stilettos were? And I don't remember teaching him about pacing....

But he was so right.

Ask yourself the following questions.

1) Do you give as much prayer to life decisions as you give consideration to your training log?

2) Do you make decisions at a sprinting pace and discover you can't finish the race because you get burned out?

3) Do you make "in the moment" decisions without considering how it will impact your future?

This conversation with my dad is what inspired my life verse - 2 Timothy 4:7. "I have fought the good fight. I have finished the race. I have kept the faith."

**Fight the good fight.**
Only fight the battles worth fighting. Just as you must train regularly, train smart, and challenge yourself, you must keep a consistent walk with Christ, cling close to Him, and accept the tasks He gives you.

**Finish the race.**
He put you here for a reason. He has a purpose for your life, and it is your job to be obedient to fulfill that purpose.

**Keep the faith.**
Never forget that Christ is worth living for...and dying for.

Runner’s Envy

"I run because I used to be envious of people that could run, and now I am that person."
Kendra Thompson, Everyday Runner

I completely relate. I come from a family of runners. My childhood was full of mom-enforced runs. It was the worse torture imaginable for an unathletic-stubborn-girl. She made us jog, and by that I mean the absolutely slowest run possible while still moving, for a whole entire half mile. At eleven I thought it was inhumane. Not that I ever actually ran the whole distance – as soon as I was out of sight, I walked. In love with running, I was not! But something about those mom-enforced runs must have worked, because my whole family runs now. One brother runs track in college, one sister runs with the cross-country team at a different college, and two more sisters run both track and cross-country in High School. A running family, well, except for me. I envied their natural athletic ability, long-legged strides, and the discipline it takes to just run.

I envied my siblings, whose running won them scholarships to college. I envy my Mom, who still runs at least three miles a day. Last summer, I was confined to bed with a particularly vicious and disgusting form of mono. And I envied my best friends who were able to run five miles a day while I was too weak to move from the couch. When I recovered, I decided that envy was overrated. If I wanted to be like all of them, I should. So I joined a running team, was handed a training schedule, and begin running every day. Three months after I begin running, I ran my first half-marathon.

The funny thing is – my new friends, those who have met me in 2008, actually think I am a runner. The thought makes me laugh. But, I guess it is true. I have the right runners clothes, I wear Asics that correct my under-pronation, I use (and understand) words like cross-train, carbo-loading, and fartlek ( I still giggle at that one). Of course the thing that really makes me a runner is that I hit the trails at least five days out of seven for a weekly mileage of thirty or so. I guess I am a runner. I guess I did it – I became that which I envied.

That’s the thing about envy. It only works as long as you don’t have it or haven’t become it yet. Envy can also show you who you really want to be. It can reveal what is most important to you. But envy also sets those people, those things that are envied, apart. Envy puts ordinary people, like runners, on a pedestal.

There are other people that I envy. I envy my mom’s prayer life. I envy my brother’s sold-out-to-Jesus lifestyle. I envy my best friend’s soul-shattering, life-changing quiet times. I envy the realness of my pastor’s faith. I want what they have. And I can continue just to want it, or I can become it. It’s not like they are anything special, they simply serve a very special God. It is not that they are more loveable, more useable, or way more talented. God uses those who surrender to His leadership. God uses those who surrender the reins and allow their life to be useable.

I want to pray unceasingly, in full faith, in accordance with God’s will – like my Mom does. I want to be fully surrendered to God, obedient in all things, passionately living the life He designed me to live – just like my little brother is. I want to meet God every time I open His Word, so cleansed of sin that I hear every Word that God speaks – just like my best friend. I want a faith that is real, relevant, true, and life-changing to everyone I encounter – like my pastor. I want their faith, their walk with the Lord, their obedience. This can be good envy. An envy that can be used by the Holy Spirit: if I allow Him to control the envy rather than the envy control Him.

If the envy controls The Holy Spirit:
I become bitter and resentful that God favors my friends and family more than He does me. I see our lack of relationship as God’s fault, or a flaw in how he made me, not my responsibility. I pull away from anyone who has a vibrant, intimate relationship with God. Eventually, I pull away from the church altogether. I still envy those who have a stronger faith, but I have given up hope of ever achieving that spiritual state of my own. The result is depression, anger, and the need to find something else to live for, so I turn to a self-centered life of sin.

If the Holy Spirit controls the envy:
He provides the power to become that which I envy. I realize that the only thing that sets my apart from them is that they are living each day in the victory of the cross, driven by the will of God, empowered by unending grace, and humbly being transformed by the Spirit of God. I realize that we serve the same God, who offers the same saving grace to all who will daily take up their cross and follow Him. I spend quality time with people who have the kind of faith I want. I learn from them and am inspired by their intimate relationship with Christ. My quest for a closer relationship with God leads me to spend hours in the Word, start and finish my day with prayer, and constantly seek the fellowship of believers. The result is a death of self and a transformation into a woman who exudes Jesus Christ.

Spiritual envy can be a great thing if it causes you to become what you envy.

Personally, I have come to the point in my Christian life where I can no longer fake it. No longer will I be satisfied to drift along in the average. I want the amazing. I refuse to meander in half-hearted religion. I want the miraculous. I will no longer wander in the wilderness of personal satisfaction. I will accept nothing less than total sacrifice. I will not settle for merely functional or competent Christianity. I want a soul-burning, heart-stopping, world-changing, love relationship with the God of all creation. I am done being a mediocre Christian. I want a life so Christ-like that when others imitate me, they become like my Lord. I want to become that which I envied. I want a life that is real, bold, Christ-like, forever. And that life starts now.

So I am turning off my computer and picking up my Bible for the remainder of the evening.

“Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” Matthew 16:24

“And calling the crowd to him with his disciples, he said to them, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” Mark 8:34

“And he said to all, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23

“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:1-2

The Finish Line

The reasons runners run are as numerous and unique as the number of runners around the world. Some run because they have something to prove. Some run to impress others. Some run to beat others. Some run for a medal. Some run to prove to themselves that they can. Some run for the adrenaline, others run for the exercise. The reason I run depends on the day, the mood, and the pair of running shoes.

Runners are different. Each has his or her own gait, preferred course, running music, and favorite brand of running shoes.

But there is one constant for all runners.

The finish line.

In every race, whether a 5k, 10k, marathon, or ultra, there is always a finish line. Whether the course is certified or homemade – it ends at the finish line.

That last one hundred meters is the hardest, longest, most exhausting leg of the race. And yet it is also the most exhilarating, out of body, portion of the race. You are running on muscle memory and sheer determination, then you round the corner and there it is – the finish line. Exhaustion, doubts, thirst, pain – it all fades away. It is just you and the finish line. It pulls you with magnetic force. And then you are done.

My first experience crossing a finish line was at the end of half-marathon, on a broken foot. I hobbled across, barely moving at a pace that anyone would consider a run. But I finished. Ahead of me was a sixty-something-year-old man. His foot wasn’t broken, but he was not moving much faster than me. The last one hundred meters was uphill and seemed to last forever. I was in torment; the pain in my foot was radiating up my leg, making every muscle scream in agony. It was all I could do not to quit. Butout of nowhere the older man suddenly transformed: he took off running like an eighteen-year-old. He went from running a 10.5 minute mile to a 6.0 minute mile. It was phenomenal. He blazed across the finish line. I was dumbfounded. Still in serious pain, but I was blown away by his finish. I wanted his finish. I wanted to end like that. I wanted my race photos to be blurry because I was sprinting toward the end with all my might. I wanted my last steps of the race to be my best.

So I went home, rehabbed the foot, and started training for the end. Every week I alternate running a 5k, 10k, and half-marathon distance, with some hill-work thrown in. And every day, no matter how what the distance, I end in a sprint. I don’t just train to run the race; I train to end the race well.

Like runners, Christians are unique. They each have a favorite version of the Bible, a chosen denomination, a form of worship, a time of day to read the Bible. No Christian does Christianity in exactly the same way.

Even as Christians are different, Christ is the same. He saves everyone the same way. He loves each with the same unconditional love. He offers the same divine power. And He is preparing a place for each with Him when they finish the race of life.

Paul compares the Christian life to a race.
“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified." 1 Corinthians 9:24-27
Christianity is a race. It is an endurance race toward heaven.

The question is, how will you finish? When your race is done, will you limp across the finish line or will your last steps on earth be your best? Will you finish the Christian life with only your church members knowing of your salvation? Or will you finish having lived as holy a life as you can, knowing as much Scripture as possible, taking as many souls with you as possible? How will you finish?

Just like with racing, you can’t just pull an ending sprint out of thin air – you have to train for the finish you want.

If you want to finish well, practice that finish every day.

“I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry. For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I HAVE FOUGHT THE GOOD FIGHT, I HAVE FINISHED THE RACE, I HAVE KEPT THE FAITH. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:1-8

Training for Holiness

"Everyone is an athlete. The only difference is that some of us are in training and some of us are not." – Runner's World Quote of the Day.

That quote appeared in my inbox this morning. My initial reaction as a runner in training was to be inspired to train harder. Then I read it again and I actually disagree with that quote a little. Not everyone is an athlete. Everyone may have athletic potential – even if it is just a tiny smidge. Take me for example: until 2008, I thought a decent workout was finishing a one mile jog without breathing too terribly hard or sweating away my cuteness. I was all cute shoes, manicured nails, fruity perfumes, and girl talk. Frou frou was my middle name. The term “athletic” couldn’t be used to describe anything about me, not even my tennis shoes. Athletic I was not. Still am not. Throw any ball-shaped object at me and my first instinct is to duck, not catch it. I still fall over when I try to do lunges. It’s ridiculously funny to watch but not athletically inspiring in the least. So, not athletic – but I am a runner. I logged 30 miles this week. It isn’t 50, and it definitely isn’t 200, but it is serious running. And, just so you know, according to the sporty-people-who-know, running is a sport. It is even an event in the Olympics. Therefore, I am an athlete – ha! My 62 pairs of high heels are laughing at that statement.

Back to the point, not everyone is an athlete. Just like not everyone is a Christian. Lost people and couch potatoes do exist. But for those who are athletes, there are two types: those in training and those who aren’t. The aren’ts are the has-been athletes. Training does not have an end. As long as you are an athlete, you train. When you stop training, you immediately become a has-been. Athlete is not a title achieved by logging so many hours on the field or in the gym. It is a description of what you do every day. The term athlete describes a life of disciple and purpose.Christian is a title given upon the acceptance and belief in the person and work of Jesus Christ. But Christianity, the process of becoming like Christ, continues as long as we live. Just like the training to be an athlete, learning to be like Christ never ends. As long as there is breath in our bodies, there is sin to be shed and holiness to be learned. And as long as we can still stand, there are still seconds that can be shaved off of our mile. It is a never ending process called training. Training for holiness.

Running must be planned or it won’t happen. No runner wakes up at 6am and decides spur of the moment to run twelve miles in 19degree weather. That run was planned weeks in advance, as part of the master plan to get that runner to a goal. And that goal is bigger than early mornings and cold weather. So the runner gets up and runs.

Holiness must be planned or it will never be learned. No Christian wakes up an hour earlier than required on a Monday morning and reaches for the Bible just because they are tired of sleeping. That time in the Word, those moments spent with God were planned beforehand. That discipline didn’t just come; it was planned in times of strength to carry us through early morning moments of weakness. A plan was made and committed to in order to insure that follower of Christ will actually follow Christ. And that dedication to the cause of knowing Christ is bigger than sleep or personal time. So the Christian wakes up early and kneels to pray.

I have a training schedule. It incorporates mileage and strength training, crossing training and speed work, hill training and resting into my week. If it wasn’t for that training schedule I wouldn’t be consistent. That little chart is the map to being a better runner. It sets the pace for the next several months of running. I know what is expected of me physically so that I can prepare mentally. As Christians, we need the same thing to keep us on track in following Christ. We need a plan for holiness.

Even though I talk more than anyone you have probably ever met, I am actually a doer. I actually made out a training chart for holiness. It’s on a pink Excel spreadsheet - I will spare you the details. It looks a little like this:

Running Schedule:
Monday: 60 minute run, comfortable jog. 2 sets speed drills. Weights: arms/legs.
Tuesday: Run 6 miles, race pace. Core.
Wednesday: Cross train (for me that is bike or elliptical). Weights: arms/legs.
Thursday: Run 8 miles, race pace +1.
Friday: Rest. Core.
Saturday: Run 12 miles, race pace or whatever it takes to finish.
Sunday: 4 mile jog or hill train.
Each week mileage increases.

Holiness Schedule:
Monday: Read 1 John 1, journal reflection, prayer run*. Scripture memory.
Tuesday: Read 1 John 2, journal, prayer run. Personal Bible Study on Genesis.
Wednesday: Read Psalms, journal. Time of Praise. Scripture memory.
Thursday: Read 1 John 3, journal, prayer run. Personal Bible Study on Genesis.
Friday: (Tired) Read Psalms, just let them wash over me. Listen to God.
Saturday: Read 1 John 4, journal, prayer run. Accountability. Scripture memory.
Sunday: Time of thanksgiving and praise (with the help of my iPod and David Crowder), meditate on Scripture memorized, read over 1 John 1-4. Personal Bible Study on Genesis.
*I pray for others while I run.

“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one's deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” 1 Peter 1:13-19

So who are you?
Are you the beer-bellied has-been athlete yelling at replays of the game in an effort to reclaim his glory days? Or are you the runner pouring sweat with straining muscles and who forces yourself across the finish line, breaking the tape with head held high because you did it.

Are you the Christian who reaches over his Bible in the morning in favor of the newspaper, whose memories of God are the only thing that convinces him that God actually exists? Or are you the Christian who is daily fighting the good fight, who expects to meet with God every day and hear from God ever time the Word is opened?Choose to train. Make a plan. Commit to the discipline of holiness. Just do it. So that you can say, as Paul did, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7

Train for holiness.

Look Like a Runner

I am a new runner.
New meaning that two months ago my idea of exercise was sitting on my couch watching people on TV do sit-ups. Last week I topped nine miles. I didn’t just get up off the couch and run that ridiculous distance, it took a lot of training and conditioning. And now I am not only running, but I love it! And I love looking like a runner. Did you know there is a whole world of shopping devoted just to runners? Shoes, matching outfits in sweat evaporating material, blister-preventing socks, sweatshirts out of this really cool material that heats up when you sweat, and even computer chips that attach to the shoe and keep track of your mileage. Sigh. It is a shopping girl’s dream!

I have the cutest running outfits: did you know they make running skirts? Yeah, and they are not only more comfortable than shorts, they cover more jiggly too! My expensive correct-my-mild-overpronation-shoes match my running skirt which totally makes my too cute, yet still totally functional, running outfit.

I have all the right gear; I look like the model runner. And when I put it all on people assume I am a runner. After all, I look the part. But looking the part doesn’t make me a runner. I can put on my cute moisture-wicking outfit, I can shop at runners-only-stores (yes, they have those stores, and they are fabulous!), I can hang out at the trails, I can talk about mileage and times, but until I actually get out there and run I am not a runner. Nothing I wear or say or buy will make me a runner. Only running makes me a runner.

It is the same for Christianity.

If you haven’t noticed, there is a definite church vocabulary. There are certain clothes that are appropriate for church and Christians, while other clothes are a total no-no. There are Christian stores, Christian t-shirts, Christian music, Christian movies (smirk), and even Christian diets. And a lot of that stuff is fine and dandy. But none of that paraphernalia makes you a follower of Christ. Looking the part does not make you a Christian. Believing in His death and resurrection, accepting His saving grace, and living each day with Him as Lord of your life. That is what makes you a follower of Christ. Nothing more. Nothing less.

There are specific details that give away a good runner. Evidence of the mileage run. Blisters. Black toenails. Sweat stained headbands. BodyGlide. Even a runner’s expensive shoes bear scars – dirt marks, worn tread, and soles that mold to its runners feet.

Real Christ Followers also bear the evidence of their faith on their lives. A Bible earmarked and torn from use, because they spend time in it every day. Knees worn from hours spent in prayer for others. Scars from spiritual battles. Lines of weariness on their faces from consistently saying no to sin. Tired muscles from repeatedly choosing to take the high road. Joy in times of sorrow, love when faced with an enemy, peace is times of distress, faithfulness to the unfaithful, self-control when faced with over-indulgence, forgiveness to the unforgivable, purpose in a self-centered world – these are marks of Jesus on our lives.

True runners bear the scars of their discipline and commitment on their bodies. Ordinary people may only see feet in desperate need of a pedicure, but other runners see their character and lifestyle written on their body. Non-runners don’t recognize the signs of a runner, the scars are just scars to them. But to another runner it means companionship, someone who understands, someone who is equally committed. Those runner-scars reveal who that person is on the inside.

True, committed, followers of Christ bear the marks of their lifestyle on their body. Badges of honor that bear witness to the world. The world will not, cannot understand those marks. They don’t get why you would put yourself through that kind of strain and self-denial. Then again, they haven’t met Jesus. Other followers of Christ, they understand. They see the scars and are encouraged. They are not alone in this race. You keep on, in spite of pain or difficulty, and so can they. Your Christ-following scars are badges of honor, testimonies of battles survived, of a Savior who ran beside you every step of the way.

Take a sec and look at your life: Do you find yourself getting to the track and only looking the part? Does it still not click why so many seem to enjoy running in the first place? Then ask someone. Try these questions: What made you start running for Christ, how to you prepare yourself daily for the hurt and pain of the Christian workout, and most importantly what is at the end of the race? Click here for more questions and answers.

Do you get short-winded when exercising your faith? Don’t know exactly which shoe to choose or what path to run? Then join the apostles and start running with a group. Even the early believers didn’t have it all together but realized through companionship and accountability they could spur each other on. Look around you and see who is sprinting towards Christ and ask to join their team.

Do you have bruises on your knees from stumbling in your faith? What about scars that remind you of trials faced? Remember to count it all joy when you see that Christ is working in you to make you stronger and better. Even Peter, The Rock, stumbled in his faith but used it as a reminder of Christ’s continuing power. Let Christ pick you up just like Peter and continue your run toward Him.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like a man running aimlessly; I do not fight like a man beating the air. No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Phil. 3: 10-15 "That I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.”

RUN UGLY

My running coach closed his weekly encouraging email with a challenge to “Run Ugly.” And being the girly girl that I am, I immediately took offense to that statement. I don’t want to run ugly! I don’t want to do anything ugly, if I can help it. I want to run pretty. I like pretty food, pretty shoes, pretty coffee (which is why I pay $6 a drink for it), pretty music, and things that smell pretty. I am a pretty kind of girl. So I must be honest, when I started running two months ago, I wanted that to be pretty too. I bought the adorably coordinating running outfit and was the cutest thing at the trails. But as soon as I actually began to run, I learned that running pretty isn’t really running. There is nothing pretty about a runner who has just finished a ten mile run. They are soaked in sweat, red-faced from exertion, with salt deposits on their face and arms, and they smell like BodyGlide. Running just isn’t pretty. It’s inspiring, challenging, and exhausting, but not pretty.

Neither is following Christ. Oh, some churches are trying to market Christianity as this warm and fuzzy, make you feel good all over, happily ever after transformation. But that is pure baloney. Following Christ is hard. It means saying no to old habits and resisting the temptation to sin. It means clinging on to Christ just to make it through the day. It means spending time on your knees getting to know your Savior. It means doing His will for your life, not your own. It means living to glorify Jesus Christ and not yourself. It means spiritual warfare and being misunderstood by anyone who doesn’t love Jesus just as much as you do. There is nothing pretty about following Jesus Christ. It is amazing, it has eternal rewards, it means never having to be alone ever again, it means your life has a great purpose, but it is not pretty.

Each one of us has a choice: pretty or ugly?
To be a runner, I have to leave pretty at the house before hitting the trails. But the flip side is that ugly or not, I get to run! I get to feel the wind in my hair, the sunshine on my face, feel my body rise to the challenge of the race. It’s glorious.

To be a follower of Christ, I have to give up warm fuzzies and die to myself. But the flip side is that as difficult as it is to follow Christ – I get to be a part of a purpose far greater than myself. I get to be forgiven. I get to share that amazing forgiveness with others. I get to spend eternity in a perfect heaven with my God. I get to walk with Jesus every day, following in his footsteps. I get to be a reflection of Jesus to the world, and that is way better than simply being pretty.

The Effects of Running Ugly:
(Pretty gets you compliments, so what does ugly get you?)

1. Icky-Sweat-Haters. People who don’t run just don’t get the sweat thing. They think it is icky and smelly and gross. As runners, we get past the sweat factor real quick, it is just evidence of our hard work. Non-runners don’t want to hang around someone who just finished a half-marathon because they don’t want the sweat to rub off. This happens all the time in the Christian life. Your continual push toward godliness makes them run away so you won’t get God all over them. “If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you.” John 15:19

2. The You-Crazy-Runner Crowd. The people who stand on the sidelines and shake their heads as you run by. They don’t understand how you can enjoy such intense exercise. They think you are crazy for you love of running. They just don’t get it. Neither do non-believers. They won’t get why you give up sleep to read your Bible before work, or why you are kind to people who gossip about you, or why you put others first. They just won’t get it, and they never will unless they too start racing after Jesus Christ. “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God”.1 Corinthians 2:12

3. The You-Make-Me-Feel-Fat-ers. People who don’t run, but wish they did. They know they need to get off the couch and hit the track to burn off last night’s Chinese take-out, but they just don’t want to. It’s too much work, it has been too long since they last exercised, they are too old and fat to change. We’ve all heard the excuses. Funny thing is, those are the same kind of excuses that I hear from people who don’t want to go to church. The discipline and athleticism of a runner makes couch-potatoes feel guilty. “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.” John 3:19-21

4. Those who are inspired to run. Some people will see you running, see the joy it brings you, the benefit to your health and they will join you in the race. Most people will think you are insane, but a few will get it. And those are the ones that will run beside you as you race pass all the people who think you are crazy. Run to inspire. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” John 3:16-17

As modern girls, it is easy to get completely preoccupied with all things pretty.

Don’t. Don’t worry about pretty, just run.

Run!

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.” 1 Corinthians 9:24-26

“Holding fast to the word of life, so that in the day of Christ I may be proud that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.” Philippians 2:16

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” Hebrews 12:1-2