If you have ever (or never) run before the likelihood that you have at some point thought that running was ‘stupid’. People ask runners “why would you punish yourself like that?” and “how can running be ‘fun’?”. I myself have been that person. And yet now that I am running I feel completely different about it. It’s one of those things that you can’t “knock it, ’till you’ve tried it”. But even so I recently found myself thinking again “this is dumb”, “whoever thought this up?”. It was on my first 5k run ever. And it wasn’t the distance or the speed that bothered me. Two things bothered me: running alone and running in circles (literally). Whoever thought that running around a track was a great thing to do was crazy: you don’t get anywhere and you don’t see anything (except the next bit of pavement). Furthermore, why would anyone want to run alone? It’s lonely, easy to quit and feels a lot more like exercise than fun. I run because it is fun. I run because I get the privilege of being with my wife and my friends. I run because of the goals to achieve and the benefits to my body, soul and spirit. I don’t run for exercise. And so that brings me now to a few more ministry lessons I have learned from running:
- Don’t run alone, grab a group of people who are passionate about running the course with you to the end.
- Don’t run in circles, find a destination, a goal, a worthy cause and set your sights on that finish line.
- Find joy in the journey, notice God’s creation, see new sights, hear new sounds, smell new smells. Let the joy of the Lord be your strength for running.
- Don’t settle, there is always something to be discovered as you run a little faster and little farther. There are new lessons and new destinations that God has in store for you.
I am sure to share more lessons later, but that is it for now. Now, GO, run the course God has set for you!
Pastor Michael Johnson 