I am Stronger

I am writing this on the Fourth of July, and today I did something I didn't think I could do. I completed the Peachtree Road Race, a 10K.

If you had told me two months ago, or for that matter two days ago, that I would be running in the Peachtree, I would have laughed in your face. The experience for me, therefore, was completely surreal.

Inspired by my friend Scott a few months ago to start training for a 5K, I set out on a program called From Couch to 5K. I started training on May 4 - exactly two months ago. There is no way you could have convinced me on that day that I'd be able to do what I did today. I can't believe the miles I've traveled since then. Something changed within me, and I made a commitment to myself that I have refused to break. On May 4, I started the program, and even sealed the self-commitment by registering in advance for a race.

It wasn't the Peachtree. In fact, the race I registered for is still a month away.

I didn't register for the Peachtree at all in fact. Just due to a set of happy accidents, I ended up with a number on Friday afternoon. About 24 hours ago.

Now, I won't fool you. I certainly was nowhere near the fastest - that is plain laughable. I didn't run the whole way - but I completed the first 5K, walked a bit, and ran the final mile. I crossed the finish line feeling on top of the world! All day I have reveled in the accomplishment of doing something I didn't know I could do.

My friend Amy recently started running too, and she said it so well - that she was amazed by what her body could do. Today I watched miracles all around me, and I found myself in awe at the wide variety of people that turned out to run, walk, and cheer on Peachtree Street.

I saw my family and some special friends cheering and snapping photos. I saw friends who were so surprised to see me, of all people, running the Peachtree - I'll cherish the looks on their faces. I saw strangers handing out water and shaking posters and yelling good words. And one of my favorite parts - when the priest at The Cathedral of St. Philip "blessed" the runners with "Holy Water" as we ran by the church. At that moment, official holy water or not - I can tell you I felt deeply blessed, and filled with a delight I find hard to even describe. In the midst (or perhaps mist) of these things, I felt full of prayer and gratitude - for my family, for friends, for strangers, for our country, for those who serve, for my health, for the very way in which my body worked.

By far the greatest lesson for me was this - to listen to what I know to be my own true and inner voice. That I can be trusted. That mental dismay is often much more difficult to overcome than physical dismay. That I am not in competition with anyone but myself. That I am stronger than I thought myself to be.

And you are too.

I'm completely convinced that every one of us needs the experience of having complete strangers cheer you on as you make your way through your hurdles. How different would we be if we all could feel that sense of encouragement in our daily lives? Take a moment to picture them; you know, those people who would be along your route. You know their faces. Or, perhaps, maybe you don't. Imagine all of those who would wait for you, cheer for you, high five you, pat you on the back, offer you water. They exist.
You don't have to run an actual race to feel the importance of them in your life. Your life, is, in many parallels a race. Paul saw it - as he argued with the Corinthians about his status as an apostle, he compared the experience to a race:
24 Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. 25Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable garland, but we an imperishable one. 26So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; 27but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.
I Corinthians 9:24-27

Don't run aimlessly. Trust your inner voice to lead you along your path. Picture those who would line the streets for you, and then go ahead and thank them. They probably need a little encouragement too.

Don't ever be surprised at what God might do in you and through you. God is good. God can be trusted. So can you.

Amen and amen.

In Wisdom,
Brandi Calhoun Diamond

Wisdom's Orchard is growing over the summer! You may check our website and not notice many course offerings at this time. We'll have more coming soon, but right now we're planting seeds and tending our trees! If you have ideas you'd like to plant for future courses with us, feel free to send them to brandi@wisdomem.com. We'd love to hear from you! Then sit back and enjoy your summer - we'll return soon with a smorgasbord of course recipes!