Prayer Running, Part 2

This photo sum up anyone else's life besides mine? How many days do you feel like you're at work, trying to get something done, when someone in your family calls? Normally, you wouldn't take a personal call in the office, but you figure since you're working through lunch to finish your task, it's permissible. As if that's not enough, your legs are cramping from sitting at that desk all morning, and you just feel the need to do some bicep curls. (Personally, I usually go for jumping jacks.)

Life calls for multitasking. I look for opportunities to do more than one thing at a time. For example, when I get home from the gym in the morning, I brew the coffee while I am in the shower. Then, I fix breakfast for James and I so my hair can air dry a little and it doesn't take as long with the hairdryer. Then, I do my makeup while the straightener heats up, etc. I think he's used to it now, but when we first got married, James was just so frustrated with my routine. "Can't you just do one thing at a time?" I looked at him like he had three heads.

But that wasn't the first time I heard that question. I first discovered praying while running during my senior year of high school. Running seemed like one of the only times of my day when I was truly focused on one task. At this time in my life, I was also very frustrated with my prayer relationship with God. It wasn't that I didn't have anything to say. (That's never a problem for me. I've been told I could make a brick wall talk back.) But everytime I would try and pray, my sister would come in my room, or my cell phone would ring. There was always a distraction. That's when I had the bright idea, "No one can interrupt me if they can't catch me!" So I started praying on my morning run.

For the first time, my prayer life soared. I talked to God without distractions. I made a new discovery when I started marathon training. After about 6 miles, I can't carry on a conversation anymore. I was forced to listen to God. I promise He'll speak if you give Him a chance to get a word in!

I was on track for about a year...and then, I got an iPod for Christmas. So excited to finally have the latest running toy, I couldn't wait to try it out on my next run. And I began ignoring God.

I didn't stop praying. But once I again, I would get distracted. How effective can a prayer really be when it consists of, "God, please bless Jeff and Staci as they minister to Your people in Botswana...ooohhh I love this song! ::Singing:: What will people say when they hear that I'm a Jesus Freak? What will people do when they find out it's true?:: Oh, man, what was I saying? Oh yeah, help me to be a strong witness to Jerred in my math class."

I didn't notice a change in my running. My pace stayed the same, my endurance didn't change. The beat of the music didn't propel my legs faster at all! I did notice a difference somewhere else - my relationship with God. I had gone back to a popcorn prayer mentailty. When something in life popped up that I needed, I prayed. Other than that, we were casual aquaintences when I would show up to His house on Sundays and mid-week bible study.

That summer, I stepped outside to run, but it was too hot. I decided it was a treadmill day. So I headed to the gym. But when I opened my gym bag, I was horrified to discover...my precious iPod was on the charger at home.

Don't panic, I told myself. You can do this. You ran forever without one. Just pray. No big deal.

You know those friends that it doesn't matter how long it's been since you've seen then, but everytime you talk, it's like you never left each other? That's how my prayer run went that day. I talked to God through seven miles (I got the extra one in...I had too much to say!) When I finally stopped to listen, I was overwhelmed with the thought of, "I've missed you."

Here's what's really beautiful. It wasn't just me who missed God. GOD MISSED ME. Me - a somewhat annoying little blonde with a squeaky voice that doesn't come with a "Mute button!

Scripture tells us that our God is a jealous God (Exodus 20:4-6, Exodus 34:14, Deuteronomy 6:15). He doesn't take it well when we are not spending time with Him, not talking to Him, and not taking time to listen.

This is a challenge for you to figure out what works best for you. Maybe God fills you with words to say to Him when you listen to praise music as you run like Gabrielle. Or maybe you are a little to ADHD like me, and you need to limit your multi-tasking when it comes to your relationship with God.

Whatever works for you, give God the dedication and undivided attention He deserves. On your mark, get set, GO!

Prayer Running, Part 1

6:30am. I park at the trails and double check my double-knotted Asics. The sun is just peeking over the horizon, casting an orange glow over the path. I love my morning route: a winding river-side trail that goes on for endless miles. I always start my run heading east toward downtown, it makes sense to run into the sun before it gets to hot, then have the sun at your back for the last bit of mileage. But if I had to be honest, the sun has nothing to do with why I run east….in the early mornings the sun shines through the high rise buildings causing light to glint off of the chrome skyscrapers that frame downtown. Sunrise and skyscrapers combine in a prismic effect that adds some serious magic to my run. And I am all about having as many distractions as possible to keep my mind off blisters or sore muscles.

6:35am. I usually warm up with a five minute jog, which also allows me to recalibrate my Nike chip to get an accurate reading on today’s run. I am in serious LOVE with my Nike iPod chip. It tracks my pace, mileage, and time. Once my calibration is set, I hit play and run toward the sunlight. David Crowder pounds through my headphones: Here is our King, Our Love is Loud, Wholly Yours, God of Creation, Undignified, All This for a King,The Glory of it All. And suddenly, I am alone. Gone is the background noise of traffic, the squawking of birds hoping to be fed, the whiz of cyclist passing to my left. Even the pounding of my own feet has disappeared. It’s just me and Jesus.

Running is my time with God. Don’t get me wrong, it doesn’t take the place of reading scripture, memorizing the Word, or going to church. But running is when Jesus and I talk. The iPod effectively blocks out the world (don’t worry Dad, I stay alert to would-be predators). Sometimes I start out the run with a specific burden on my heart. Sometimes I picture my church and pray for every face. Sometimes I pray for my family. Running is my time of intercessory prayer. I have tried to be a “good Christian” and do all my prayer stuff during my quiet time, but I find myself distracted by random noises, by the phone ringing, by the to-do list taunting me from the kitchen table. I can’t focus for long periods of time….unless I am running. When I first begin to run, it was serious work. It hurt so much, I was so out of shape – I was desperate for anything that would get my mind off of the pain of beating my body into shape. So I begin to pray. Soon I found that I would get so focused on praying that an hour would fly by without me realizing it. And I was able to really invest in my church, my family, my friends marriages, and in lost souls by praying for them.

Running and Jesus became so intertwined that I looked forward to running (no matter how many miles were on the schedule for that day) because I got to run with Jesus. And I loved praying because it improved both my spirit and my body through running. It was totally win/win. I was excited when people asked me to pray with them because I could tell them with absolute certainty that I would pray that night during my 10k run, or the next morning during my sprint workout.

7:15am. My runs aren’t just time for me to talk with God; they also provided the perfect platform for me to listen to Him. In case you haven’t figured it out, I am quite the talker. And that transfers into my prayer life as well. I generally talk to God way more than I listen to Him. Which is completely backwards, since He kind of knows everything about, well, everything! But somewhere around mile five, my brain shuts down. The first two miles are always torture, no matter how in shape I am, so that is when my prayers are the most focused. By mile five I am in the zone; I am in rhythm and have settled into my stride. Running isn’t effortless, but it is no longer excruciatingly hard work. My brain no long needs to force my legs to move, they do it on their own. So my brain shuts down, which means that whoever I was praying for when I hit the shut-down point gets prayed for over…and over…and over… or I stop praying. And when I am finally quiet, God begins to speak. He convicts me of sin, He brings Scripture to mind and teaches me about it, He challenges, inspires, convicts, and encourages me. He teaches me what to pray and how to pray. Mileage after the five mile marker is the sweetest, most inspiring time I have with my Lord and Savior. Eight out of ten blogs that I write come from times running with Jesus. Book ideas, Bible study insights, and revelation of His nature come in those final miles. Makes me want to run distance every day just so I can meet Jesus. Not that I cannot experience the same thing at other times of the day, the only thing stopping me is my own lack of discipline to focus on Jesus alone. What works for me is combining the discipline of running with the discipline of prayer (both talking and listening).

I run with an iPod. And not just because of my obsession with the Nike chip. I run with music to prevent myself from being distracted. Especially when I know God has something to tell me that I don’t want to hear, or a sin to convict me of, or He wants to call me to greater holiness. If I can distract myself from hearing something I don’t want to hear from God, I will. So I eliminate distractions with my iPod. I only run to worship music. And I don’t like most Christian artists, so it is pretty much me, David Crowder, and Jesus. The worship songs keep me focused on Jesus. Anytime my thoughts start to wander or I try to ignore what God is saying, David Crowder says something like “Take my heart, I Lay it down, At the feet of you whose crowned, Take my life, I’m letting go, I lift it up to You who’s throned. And I will worship You, Lord. Only You, Lord” and I am back on track, listening to God.

8:30am. I have run the day's race and met my Lord. Running is no longer just about making the day’s mileage, it is about running to meet Jesus and get my heart in line with His.

“Is the Son of God praying in me, or am I dictating to Him?....Prayer is not simply getting things from God, that is a most initial form of prayer; prayer is getting into perfect communion with God. If the Son of God is formed in us by regeneration, He will press forward in front of our common sense and change our attitude to the things about which we pray.” --Oswald Chambers

Prayer running: using the discipline of running to inspire the discipline of prayer.