One Week Later, and the Benefit of Hindsight

But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24

A whole week has passed since my marathon. My body feels good (though my first run will be in two days, we'll see how good it feels then). My main issue is toenails. Even worse than I thought! So far I haven't lost any, but was filled with shock and horror about three days after the marathon when three of them started oozing bloody watery fluid out from underneath the nails! I had never heard about the lovely blisters that form UNDER the nail on the nail beds. GROSS. And ouch.

After coming down from my giant runner's endorphin high and back to reality a day or two later, I remembered that really, I'm nothing special. Many, many people run this distance, many run even further (and I have no Ultra-marathon plans, 26.2 is far enough for me). I saw a Marine running the same marathon in his fatigues and boots, carrying all of his gear in an enormous back pack. Saw another Marine running carrying a huge American flag on a heavy pole, waving it proudly the whole way. I saw countless runners with "cancer survivor" on the back of their shirts. The first group across the starting line was the wheelchair athletes.

The reality is I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, aunt, friend, nurse who loves her Savior with her whole heart. The ONLY special thing about me is Jesus, and the work He does within me; I am the daughter of the one true King. Whether it is running a marathon, or making dinner for my family, if I do it as though I am doing it for Jesus Himself, that is what matters.

Maybe by sharing my journey others can be inspired to meet whatever challenge they face in life. And hopefully they will see the mighty power, strength, love and compassion that Jesus is ready to pour into them.

Meanwhile I am at a crossroad: do I run another full marathon? Or should I settle back into running half marathons, which are challenging as well, but far less demanding? I feel compelled to run the full marathon in Denver on September 22 (my home turf!), but am not sure why. I've done it, I know I can do it, and I know it took a physical toll on my body (as evidenced by my toes). Yet I think I have another marathon in me!

I think I will pray and see what Jesus has to say about it.