Someone to Run With...

I ran the America Heroes 10k this past Memorial Day. It was the Monday after an out-of-town wedding where I feasted on wedding cake and tiny little appetizers nonstop for three days. To make matters worse, I stepped off the plane and went to a church picnic….with homemade chocolate cupcakes.
So, I was over-stuffed and under-trained when I stepped up to the starting line.

The race itself was fun: in honor of the military we started the race with an Apache Helicopter escort. Talk about adrenaline rush – there is nothing like racing a combat helicopter to the finish line!

I started off the race by myself, but ran into a training buddy in the first half mile. I’ve never run with her before, because we have different strides – but the wedding cake was slowing me down. We matched strides and the race really begin.

I like having someone to run with. It helps me pace myself. And for some reason, I unconsciously try to impress and maybe even beat the other runner. What can I say, I am a psychotic competitive freak! Running with a partner pushes, inspires, and challenges.

I was hurting from my undisciplined weekend, it was 97degrees, the water stations were manned by over-zealous teens who put ice in the water…which meant I had nothing to drink in four miles….and I am an every-mile-drinker kind of girl. It was ugly, that is the only way to describe my run.

But my friend kept me strong and steady. Actually, I think my stubborn Irish side simply refused to be beaten. Whatever the reason, we kept an easy (or what was supposed to be easy) ten-minute-mile pace for four and a half miles. Then her old ankle injury started acting up, she needed to slow down and I was ready to speed up for a different finish.

Hey, I may have run ugly, but I could still finish well!

So I took off at mile five, but soon begin slowing down – I didn’t have anyone to push me. I needed running accountability so that I could finish strong and fast! In desperation, I begin to pick specific runners ahead of me and pass them, then pick another one and pass them, and so on. It kept me focused. I passed Bib Number 5443. Within a minute he had passed me. Another minute and I passed him again. He was shorter than me, but far more muscular, so we were pretty evenly matched. I was wishing for a running partner when, just then 5443 passed me again and it hit me – this was my running partner for the remainder of the race.

We never ran side by side, but passing each other became our focus. It distracted me from the ever-enlarging blister on my right foot. We rounded the final corner for the last 100 meters; 5443 was a good twenty feet in front of me. My stubborn Irish rage took over and I decided there was no way he would beat me. Let me just say thank you to my Mom for long leg genetics, cause they sure came in handy for that final sprint! I flew past my challenger and crossed the finish line ten seconds before him. It was fabulous – a true racing high!

I was getting my race chip removed when he ran up and complimented my finish. I smiled and thanked him, because if he hadn’t pushed me I wouldn’t have finished like I did. He thought I was just a great finisher, but I knew he had pushed me to that fast finish.

In my car on the way home from the race I couldn’t stop thinking about that finish and how instrumental 5443 was in my finishing well. He was the running-version of a spiritual accountability partner. I had been blessed with amazing accountability partners over the years. Girls who pushed me to have a daily time with God, who called me out when I sinned, who helped me develop Godliness. Without their encouragement, support, and pushiness – I would not have the walk with God that I do today.

Imagine if you were the only entrant in a Marathon. With no one to race against, would you finish? Would you keep pace and push yourself mile after mile. With no one to pace you, would you tire out too fast? With no one racing up the hills in front of you, would you slow down at each incline? With no one to push you, encourage you, distract you….how would you race? An accountability partner is as vital to your walk with God as having other race participants is to your finishing well.

Runners are picky about who they run with: they look for someone with a similar pace, who has like training goals, and who they enjoy talking with mile after mile. They also look for someone determined to finish, who is committed to run. No one is interested in the runner partner who can’t drag his body out of bed to meet up for the scheduled early morning run.

In my experience, the best way to find a running or race partner is to run. And when I am running, then I look around me and see who was running like I needed to be. That person is my partner.

Seek an accountability partner the same way.

Run after God, seek His face. And while you seek him, look around at other Christians doing the same goals. You just met your accountability partner.

How to do it?
I have never been to Promise Keepers, because I am a girl. But I have heard that they have a song about accountability. It seems kind of cheesy as a song – but the lyrics define accountability to perfection.

· "Face to face. . ." Being accountable to someone means you sit face to face, look that person in the eye and honestly, openly discuss what is going on in your lives.
· "Shoulder to Shoulder. . ." Accountability means standing by your brother's side through thick and thin. One is not above the other; both are equal.
· "We'll Strengthen each other. . ." Through vital relationships, we become stronger, as we help each other through struggles, temptations and shortfalls, and as we encourage one another towards spiritual growth.
Promise Keepers

The Bible tells us to:
Love each other. (John 15:17)
Serve one another in love. (Galatians 5:13)
Be kind and compassionate to one another. (Ephesians 4:32)
Carry each other's burdens. (Galations 6:2)
Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other. (James 5:16)
Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Honor one another above yourselves. (Romans 12:10)
When two or more come together in Jesus’ name, He is there. (Matthew 18:20)
Accept one another. (Romans 15:7)
Encourage one another and build each other up. (1 Thessalonians 5:11)
Spur one another on toward love and good deeds. (Hebrews 10:24)
Accountability is our duty as members of the same body. (1 Corinthians 12:26-27)

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." (Proverbs 27:17).