Rock and Run

This past Saturday, my sister, brother, sister-in-law, and two of my dearest friends and I embarked upon a half-marathon adventure in the Big Easy.  It was so fun and as you can see by the silly grins on my face, it was really fun for me to be surrounded with some of my favorite people. 

Packets and swag were picked up.  Check.

 Karen's quintessential funny face was made.  Check.

We documented our pit crew/support staff.  Check.

 We rocked on.  Check. 

 We dined on over white tablecloths and good conversation and all manner of creole-inspired creations.  Check.

 We showed up.  Check.  (If you look closely, you can see the dude in the tutu.  I've never seen so many people running in tutus in my life.)

We made our traditional crazy sisters running pose.  Check.

And all of us- every single one of us crossed the finish line.  Check.

I was so proud of us all.

Despite a pretty strong training schedule and a personal best finish, for me, it was still hard.  Between low blood sugar at mile 10 and a nasty leg cramp at mile 12.5, it just wasn't easy.  And wouldn't you know it... that's just how life is.  It's ups and downs, highs and lows.

There was that song again...

Life is full of light and shadow
Oh the joy and oh the sorrow
O the sorrow


And yet will he bring
Dark to light 
And yet will he bring 
Day from night


When shadows fall on us
We will not fear
We will remember

It was sort of my theme song this go-around.

Life brings what it will and in this current state of things, Jesus has promised that yes, we will have trouble (see John 16:33), but if we let Him lead us, He trains us to fix our eyes on Him and rely on Him when it seems that we just can't do it anymore.  And He is faithful.  We must remember. 

I see half-marathons as mental practice. When things get hard, we will remember His faithfulness.  It makes all the difference. 

Could I have done it not having been a believer?  Probably. People do it all the time.

But in the end, when it really matters, I'll be able to look back on my history with the Lord and remember my interactions with Him through all my troubles- from leg cramps to dirty diapers, my aching feet to my heartaches, and remember that He was and is my hope forever. 

And by the way, what seemed to be a bunch of crazy superheroes crossed the finish line.

But make no mistake about it- it was the girl in the pink with the blue bandana who was the true Wonder Woman. 

Without ever having been a runner before, she ROCKED those 13.1 miles.

Between homeschooling her five children, being a great friend, a devoted wife, and a committed disciple of Jesus, she is a modern day heroine if I've ever known one.

In fact, maybe next time, you'll see Jonny as Captain America, Amber as Wonder Woman, Karen as the Green Lantern, and our fearless leader Nora as Spider(girl) because as far as I'm concerned... they're all pretty super!

Cheers, friends, and rock on!