Category Archives: SPIRITUALly Yours

Run for Your Life

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Dear Fellow Runaways,

During a friendly game of tag in 3rd grade, I was tripped by a boy named Keith. There were a gazillion kids chasing each other in the school yard that day, and I was the one person who managed to fall. Wearing a cute little dress and my favorite Winter coat (khaki-colored with creme trim… I loved that lil coat!), I fell face down on the concrete. My big Urkel-like glasses flew off my little face and landed a few feet away. I could hear a swarm of kids circling around me, and my best friend, Julie, came running to my side. My head hurt and my knees were sore, but I was OK… or so I thought. As I was being helped up, I couldn’t help but notice my blood hugging the cement. Julie picked up my glasses and screamed “part of your brain fell out!!!” I looked at my ginormous glasses and saw something green and bloody smashed on one of the lenses. That’s when I lost it. I began crying uncontrollably and was escorted to the nurse’s office. My cute little coat was now khaki and crimson. My dad picked me up from school and took me to the hospital where the hole in my forehead was stitched shut (and I’m pretty sure they didn’t use anesthesia… it hurt so bad the doctors had to strap me down!!). We caught the bus- yes, public transportation- back home and I went to school for the next week with my forehead bandaged like an Egyptian mummy. Go ahead, you can laugh.

From that day forth, I vowed to never run again. I ran away from my fear instead of facing it. I was truly traumatized by that fall! I hated running. Didn’t even like running for the bus! Didn’t even want my nose to run (LOL). I was probably suffering from PTSD or something. It was pretty pathetic. As silly as it sounds, I was scared to death to run! So, what did I do? One day, many years later, I decided to start training for a marathon (’cause that’s what any rational person would do, right? :-D).

My girl, Denine, and I both signed up and started training in May 2004. Our endurance was negligible at best. Being one of the world’s most non-athletic individuals, I could barely run a quarter of a mile at that point. But I committed to the training program, running alone 3 days per week and with the training group every Saturday- rain or shine! We completed the Philadelphia Distance Run (a half marathon, which is 13.1 miles) in September 2004. I managed to run 10 miles straight without stopping… only because I had to go to the bathroom really bad, and all the port-a-potties I passed were disgusting. So I kept running, hoping to find a half-way decent “facility” (never found one, by the way). By the time I reached the 10th mile, I gave myself a break and started walking (HUGE mistake! It’s hard to start back up once you stop. Momentum is key!). I thought my legs were going to fall off and I’m pretty sure that would have been far less painful… but I managed to cross that finish line anyway. Two months later (November 21, 2004), Denine and I ran the Philly Marathon (the full 26.2 miles). It took me nearly the entire 6 hours allotted to complete the race, but I did it. And Denine recently finished her 2nd half-marathon. God bless her!!

There are some folks who run marathons on a regular basis. They can finish a full marathon in less time than it took me to finish the 1/2 marathon. Shoot, there were folks who walked the entire race, and still finished before me! There was even a woman- 7 1/2 months pregnant- who finished before I did!  I tip my hat off to them all. My goal was not to win the race (as evidenced by the way I began slacking with my training as the days grew shorter and the weather waxed colder)… I just wanted to face my fears and finish the race.

I can not begin to express the sheer excitement, pride, joy, and ultimate satisfaction I felt when I finally crossed that finish line. It is a feeling like no other. To keep pressing forward in spite of your fears, in spite of your pain, and in spite of your flesh begging you to give up ….it was exhilarating (SIDE NOTE: don’t keep going if your heart tells you to stop. I mean that literally and metaphorically. Running a race that’s killing you is not worth it!). And to cross that finish line, knowing that you gave it your all and you finally reached your goal… that’s a blessing in and of itself!

When is the last time you faced your fears and challenged yourself beyond your perceived limitations? What fear has paralyzed you from doing more, having more, or being more than you are today? What’s that  “one thing” you’ve always wanted to try? What race have you started but failed to finish because the road was too long or too tough?  It’s normal to want to give up when times get hard. Your flesh will attempt to dissuade you every time. But when you set your mind to something, train properly, and commit to reaching your goal, then you, too, can cross that finish line of victory. It’s not too late. Have you started 2011 with a list of goals that you have yet to reach? Pick up where you left off, change your thinking (that’s where the training comes in), and start running again. The better you train, the less likely you are to suffer injury when the going gets tough. You can do it with God’s help. “God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.” (2 Timothy 1:7). You already have the tools you need to run the race. You just have to put your faith (and your feet) in motion.

The marathon aggravated a prior knee injury, so no more long distance running for me. But I’m so proud to say that I am one of only 1% of the world’s population that has completed a marathon. I have faced many tests and trials since 2004, and I can now look back and remind myself that I finished those races in spite of literally wanting to quit with every step I took. If I survived that grueling (albeit self-imposed) conquest, surely I can get through anything! In March 2012,  I’ll be participating in the Philadelphia Stair Climb (climbing 50 flights of stairs to raise money for The American Lung Association… less damaging to my knees than a marathon, but challenging nonetheless!). It’s been a while since I really provoked myself physically and I’m ready to get it IN. Physical training is much more of an emotional and mental feat than anything else. Challenges stimulate growth which is necessary for life… Anything that isn’t growing is dead. I’m too young to die and so are you. Pick yourself up, dust yourself off, change your thinking and get to stepping. You have an abundant life to live. Get out your comfort zone. Try something new. Stretch beyond your circumstances. Face your fears and finish your race victoriously. With all due respect, get a life… and run for it! 😉

Practically Yours,

~The Practical Chick

P.S. Although some may beg to differ, my brain didn’t fall out when I fell in 3rd grade. That bloody green thing stuck to my glasses was a piece of shrub. Just goes to show: when you’re in the midst of a traumatic experience, everything looks worse than it is. Don’t believe the hype… believe the Hope! 🙂

Jesus Was a Mourning Person

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Dear Bedside Baptist,

I am not a morning person. Never have been. My brain seems to function best late at night. I am a night owl extraordinaire! When I was a teenager, my biggest gripe about going to church was that it started too early in the morning. I would rather sleep in bed than get up early and fall asleep in church. I just wasn’t a morning person. I often hear grown-ups use the same excuse for not going to church- it’s just too early. I get that. I once believed the same thing. Yep, I get it… What they’re really saying is that it’s just not a priority.

What if Jesus wasn’t a morning Person? What if He didn’t bother to hang up on the Cross early in the morning to die for our sins? What if our salvation just wasn’t that important to Him?

Not only was Jesus a morning person, but He was a mourning person. Mourning is an emotional expression of deep sorrow or grief. It acknowledges the reality of loss. Authentic mourning requires intense vulnerability. Jesus mourned lost souls. He identified with Mary and Martha over the death of Lazarus. While in the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus agonized over His impending crucifixion. Luke 22:44 tells us that as He prayed to the Father, His “sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” He was deeply grieved over the knowledge of being separated from His Father as He died on the Cross. And He mourned for you and me. Jesus was a mourning Person.

In fact, it was His mourning that led Him to the Cross. He loved His body (aka- the Church, aka- you and me) so much that He sacrificed Himself so we wouldn’t have to die for our sins. Wow. Let that sit with you for a moment. Whether “big” or “small”, every sin you committed was befitting of a crime punishable by death (eternal separation from God). Jesus paid the price for that sin. Your sin. My sin. Our sins nailed Jesus to the Cross. But His love for us kept Him on the Cross. He could have easily said, “Forget it. These ingrates will only turn their backs on Me and deny me again. I know how they do. They’d love to join Me in Heaven, but they won’t appreciate the Hell I’m going through to get them there. I’m full of eternal life and they’re just full of excuses. Why bother?”  He could have saved Himself and let us pay the penalty for our own sins. Thank God He was a mourning Person.

It grieves me to hear folks rattle off excuse after excuse about why they don’t go to church: too tired, too busy, too many hypocrites, too early in the morning, too this, too that. Blah, blah, blah. Being a Pastor’s wife, I see first hand the hours dedicated to studying the Word and preparing a sermon that the congregation will only get to hear for 30-45 minutes on Sunday morning. I know the toil that sometimes goes into preparing Bible Study Lessons and the time management required to balance home, work, church, etc. (my husband, like many Pastors, is bi-vocational). I see the prayer, frustration, care, concern, and sacrifice involved with being the Under-Shepherd of a flock of individuals. But what trumps all that is knowing that the Good Shepherd laid down His life to provide eternal life and abundant life to His wayward sheep. I get offended when folks don’t commit to attending their local church. Yes, I kind of take it personally. It’s like they’re taking my Savior for granted! How can you truly confess that Jesus is first in your life when you are content with keeping Him last? Does His crucifixion mean nothing to you?

We need to go to church and Jesus expects us to go to church- on a regular basis. Every born-again believer needs to be a member of a local church (not TV church or on-line church). As I have creatively outlined in “How Deep Is Your Love?”, your commitment to your church is a clear indication of your relationship and commitment to Christ. Hebrews 10:25 instructs us not to “give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but to encourage one another…” We were created to be in relationship with each other- yep, even the hypocrites. (Side Note: saying that God is first in your life but willfully disobeying His commandments is rather, uh- hypocritical, don’t you think?). As our buddy, Pastor Tejado Hanchell (@TWH_PhD) always says, “there are hypocrites at your job, and you still go to work.   Go to church.” And might I add, you show up on time for work, so show up on time for church! Is Jesus mourning your lack of faithfulness?

You know those spiritual gifts you possess? They were given to you for the edification of the church- not for your own personal gain (see Ephesians 4:11-13).The church is in need of your gifts. Stop hoarding them. Are you grieving the Holy Spirit with your arrogance and selfishness?

Too often, too many folks have a lop-sided view of church. They consider it a place to go instead of a place to grow. They see it as a means to get something from God instead of giving back to God. Their perspective is skewed. As a result, they become spiritually malnourished and never fully develop in the things of God. How much more effective would we be as the body of Christ if we went to church to worship our Lord and Savior instead of seeking spiritual entertainment? What if we put our flesh aside and committed to serving the house of God with our gifts and talents? What if we sought to encourage our brothers and sisters, instead of judging them? After all, they’re just as human as we are. It’s pretty difficult to show care and concern for the fellow members of your church when you avoid being in their presence. What if our friends and families started taking our faith seriously because they finally see us taking it seriously? Imagine how much more effectively we could witness to our loved ones if we were living out what we talked about! What if folks lined up to get inside the church like they line up to get inside a store when a new Apple product hits the market? And what if we learned to mourn the loss of souls like Jesus did- to the point where we die to our flesh so we can share the Good News of eternal life in Christ? Imagine that!

I wish someone explained to me early on why it is so important to go to church. Perhaps I wouldn’t have made so many excuses not to go. Maybe I would have made my relationship with Christ more of a priority and set aside my childish ways a little sooner.

I am not a morning person. Never have been. Probably never will be. But I have grown enough to know that there is more to life than sleeping in on Sunday morning. I don’t want the Lord to find me sleeping on Him like He found the apostles after He finished those agonizing prayers in the Garden of Gethsemane. I don’t want to be that shallow Saint anymore. I denounced my membership at Bedside Baptist years ago. No, I’m not a morning person, but it is a privilege and honor to get up to worship and serve the Lord. I don’t do it begrudgingly or out of tradition. It’s out of willful obedience and love. Sure, sometimes I’d rather stay in the comfort of my bed when it’s too cold or too rainy, or when I’m just too tired, too busy, or to lazy to get up and go. But if Jesus got up on that rugged Cross for me (even though He didn’t feel like it), surely I can get up to be with Him- in the fellowship of other believers. Jesus was a mourning Person. He’s already mourned over me. I don’t want to be a grievance to His Spirit.

Practically Yours,

~The Practical Chick