Norm!

In recent weeks I’ve taken to spending my Wednesday evenings at CycleFit in Fenton for an indoor group training ride. Each week the bikes on the shop floor are moved aside and we set up our own bikes and trainers, a training video is popped into the player and (once we figure out how to work the remote, which seems to have to be re-learned each week :-) we commence to spending some quality time in the “anaerobic pain cave” (said with attitude!) – a phrase I recently learned from Ron, the shop owner/operator, and a right fine bike racer.  Truth be told, the amount of time spent in that cave is limited, and the trainer sessions are mostly in the aerobic zone – hard enough to work up a good sweat, but never so tough as to quiet the groups banter.  Calories are burned.  Friendships are forged.  Winter blahs are defeated for another day. It’s a beautiful thing.

Every 3 months or so, after logging my 300+ miles on a pair of running shoes, it’s time to visit the local running store.  We’re fortunate to have several great stores to choose from in SE Michigan.  From the big guns at Running Fit, who host more races than I could count and sponsor an untold number of other events and causes, they have made an indelible mark on the Michigan running scene.  To the smaller shops like a favorite of mine, Runnin’ Gear – no less important to local races and high school athletics, they are never too busy to spend copious quality time with you to find just the right shoe. 

Like Norm from Cheers, you hear your name called when you walk in the door, and that’s a mighty fine feeling.

How often do we take these stores for granted?  What kind of a void would be left in their absence?  How many races would disappear?  How many Marathon Clinics or Triathlon 101 classes would no longer be available?  How many friendships forged around the coffee pot or repair stand of the local shop would never happen?

Small shop owner/operators typically come from a background in the sport they now work to serve.  Most sacrifice to a degree we may never fully understand or appreciate.  Many local races are dependant on their support (and vice-versa).

Online stores are great, and are a tough competitor for the local shop who have smaller margins and have to pay premium rent and utilities, wages and such.  Social Networks are fun and help connect long lost friends and relatives.  Technology and the opportunity and convenience it provides is awesome.  I use it all and appreciate it all.  However, nothing beats the warm welcome of the local shop, the one on one customer service, the group ride or run, not to mention the amount of experience and expertise that is just waiting to be tapped.

Take the time to frequent your local shop.  It’s an investment in your sport and in your community that I promise will not be wasted.

See you there!  

Press on friends.

The least of these

The darkness was stark - still and very cold.  It was not yet 6 a.m., the thermometer on the porch read 7 degrees, surely boltered by some radiation from the house.  Wind chill was decidedly below zero.  I stepped off the porch and that distinct crunch of frozen snow permeated the quiet stillness of early morning.  A few more steps, a deep breath and a few words of affirmation (to myself), and I was off and running...

Training for a marathon means you run when you need to - not only when the mood strikes you.

Training for a marathon often brings real meaning to the phrase "the loneliness of the long distance runner".

Training for a marathon changes your priorities, forcing you to put other projects on hold and often having to seek extra grace from your spouse and family for your increased absence.

On this particular morning it was cold.  It was dark.  It was lonely.  But, and this is a big but, I went out into the wintery cold voluntarily, was dressed to run, and had a warm home and a hot shower waiting for me upon my return.

As I moved silently along the deserted streets of my community I was stirred by the lyrics that moved to the fore of my conciousness:

He shares a room outside with a dozen other guys
And the only roof he knows is that sometimes starry sky
A tattered sleeping bag on a concrete slab is his bed
And it’s too cold to talk tonight
So I just sit with him instead and think

How did I find myself in a better place
I can’t look down on the frown on the other guy’s face
‘Cause when I stoop down low, look him square in the eye
I get a funny feeling, I just might be dealing
With the face of Christ

(Hear the whole song here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-IJ7sEEHaY )

While the song paints a specific and vivid picture, in my minds eye I saw the eyes of the single mother in my church trying to be a "good mom" and make ends meet, or the family man in my neighborhood trying to guide his family through a season of employment, or the young man struggling with addiction...  Did I fully grasp that in these eyes was the face of Christ?  Jesus tells us that our response in such situations mirrors our relationship with Him!  Wow.

Heading out into the cold, not because the sometimes starry sky is where I am forced to lay my head, but because I am in a better place, a place that involves the opportunity to train for and run a marathon.   

As a winter storm "of historic preportions" bears down on us my thoughts return to those eyes.  How many of my neighbors already struggle to keep the heat and lights on?  How many are just one bad circumstance from living in the street?  How many are going to be left in the cold and dark as a result of this storm? 

And I'm thinking of my next run...
But that's not all.  I'm also left needing to know how to answer the question "So what?"  What am I going to do about it?

Today's post isn't about providing you the answer to my question.  It is, however, about getting you to ask the question yourself.  I'm on my way to answering it for me.  How about you? 

Press on friends.

The Seven Wonders of the World

Sometimes in the ordinary is hidden the extraordinary.  In the simple act of running, my passion, I hearken back to when I was a kid and running wasn't done for exercise, but just for fun, for play, for joy.  Running is so simple, so pure, so honest.  What a shame running is ruined for many by high school coaches and such that use it as punishment.  But, I digress...

How many of us have surrendered in some way to the existence that the world may label as "normal"?  Something like rise, shower, commute, work, commute, dinner, TV, and bed only to repeat, over and over and over again? 
 
Have even our acts of service become a whirlwind of activity devoid of the Love from which (whom, actually) they should flow?

When was the last time you truly "played"?  Being a grandfather of 3 boys has helped me to listen to my heart in new ways, to live and (at least try) to exuberantly love.


Many of us had to "grow up" to protect ourselves from the onslaught of the evils of this world. Others were taught to put on an outer self of respectability, and with that came a loss of joy.  Some of that is necessary and to a degree it can be good, right, even noble.  However, what if it is in lieu of living life as it is intended?  Humor me and imagine yourself skipping across the finish line of a local race, with arms held high in celebration.  Does it not tap into a wellspring of emotion.  How about standing on top of a mountain?  Or gazing into the eyes of child blessed by your gift of time?

Initially, I imagine the title of this post inspired images of architectural achievement or wonders of nature.  However, I'd like to offer you a new list of The Sever Wonders of the World:

• To Touch
• To Taste
• To See
• To Hear
• To Feel
• To Laugh
• To Love

With my apologies to the original author of this list (I found this in an old journal and don't remember its source) I invite, no encourage, even implore, you to seek the extraordinary by embracing the ordinary anew.  For me, I find each of these in running, and that, I believe, makes me a better husband, father, son, employee and employer, friend...

What about you?

"It is by the heart that God is known, and not by reason"  Oswald Chambers

"I have come that they may have life, and have it abundantly"  Jesus (John 10:10)

Press on friends (Phil 3:14)

Reflections

Last weekend I started a trail run in the dark.  The first three+ miles were slow as I felt my way through the trail, unable to see the ground in front of me.  It was chilly but dry.  The warm temps and rain of the previous few days had washed away all the snow and the return to cold temps firmed up the trail surface and it was in great running shape.  Once the day fully dawned I relaxed into an easy pace and spent the next 90 minutes or so reflecting on the year gone by. 

Initially my thoughts focused on the obvious, the difficult family circumstances that came to define the year - surprise pregnancy, cancer diagnosis, loss of jobs, mortgage problems, criminal court, civil court, divorce and frankly I could go on.  Truth is stranger than fiction and 2010 is a year that most Hollywood writers wouldn't have been able to script.

There came a point, however, where I was prompted to take a breath and push past thoughts that focused on circumstances. I believe God was calling me to see He is still on the throne, in control, and was indeed seeing us through the craziness.  It was then that I recognized there is plenty to celebrate - a short list includes:

• Gutting out a finish line at Disney marathon in sub-freezing weather with a terrible flu in January (and really enjoyed the trip with friends)
• Marriage retreat in February where Pam and I renewed our vows
• Having a great race at the Racing for Recovery Half Ironman in June where I raced in honor of family and friends celebrating recovery
• My 7:03 pace at the 10 mile Crim in August was big for me, but the race day was defined by the smiles of accomplishment from so many of my fellow Freedom Striders members (run club), 
• The miracle of birth
• Successful surgery 
• Relationship restoration
• Jobs found
• 80th birthday celebration with my mom.

I choose to define 2010 not by the challenging circumstances, but rather by deliverance, blessings, miracles and the hope for an amazing 2011.

Press on friends. 

Happy New Year!

So many live lives of default instead of design.  There are many reasons for this, and even the most purpose driven individuals have areas of their lives left somewhat untended.

“The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we hit it.” ~ Michelangelo

The first day of the new year is always a beacon of hope for those left wanting and we resolve to make positive changes in our lives.  Problem is, these resolutions rarely make it to spring.  For some of us, we don’t make it past the dinner table on day one :-)

Why is that? 

May I suggest that it is the lack of a bigger picture purpose?  Without having of firm grasp of your purpose, it becomes easy to turn back or quit at the first struggle.  Know your purpose, and you recognize (and accept) the struggles as part of the journey. With purpose comes clarity, strength, resolve.

"Where there is no vision, the people perish".  Proverbs 29:18.

A failure to plan is a plan to fail, and this goes for every area of your life from household chores, to finishing a 5k or a marathon, to your faith walk.  The point is, make a plan, and then execute the plan.  However, in order to make a plan, you need to know where you are headed (i.e. have a purpose).

"For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."  Jeremiah 29:11 NIV

We often tend to look ahead to the “some day” of our lives.  We look to some future set of circumstances that will allow us to live more, love more, do more, give more.  Unfortunately, this assumes this point of arrival at "fulfillment" is something to be pursued and achieved.  It is akin, however, to wondering in the forest and hoping you arrive at the desired destination.  May I suggest that true fulfillment is something to be learned or realized?  We need to live each day, to be in the moment.  As I’ve heard it said – "wherever you are, be there!" Make sure we are in the right forest, and then make the plan to navigate that forest.  Enjoy the journey, achieve the goal.

Developing a disciplined approach to life takes us one giant step closer to knowing, and living out our life’s true calling. 

"The LORD directs the steps of the godly. He delights in every detail of their lives. Though they stumble, they will never fall, for the LORD holds them by the hand." Psalms

37:23-24 NLT

The road we have traveled, even if littered with wrong turns and detours, is a training ground.  Don't believe the lies that say you can't.  Rather, use that experience and know that not despite of it, but because of it, you can!

"Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." Philippians 3:13-14

By now I hope you are asking yourself - “Am I where God would have me?  Am I open to His leading?  If not, what course corrections are required? Are you understanding the difference in knowing your purpose and making a resolution?  The first serves a bigger purpose while the latter, well, often serves self.

If you feel compelled to dig deeper, perhaps a Personal Mission/Vision is in order rather than another resolution?

A model drafted from a combination of Stephen Covey and Success Skills Coach Jim Rohrbach can be found on the Mission/Vision page.  I encourage you to take a few minutes over the next several days and work through this (i.e. it isn't something you do in one sitting).  Prayerfully consider the questions and the answers.  I promise it will not be time wasted!

Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.
Joshua 1:9

Press On friends, and Happy New Year!

Christmas day 2010

Merry Christmas!  I've been up for two hours, waiting for the rest of the house to wake.  I have reviewed my email, DM (Daily Mile) and FB sites, done my morning devotion (IS 53), drank one and have started a second cup of coffee, and still no other activity...

So while I wait, perhaps I'll jot down some thoughts...

Plans for 2011 have been bouncing around in my head for weeks and I'm anxious for next weeks vacation time to slow down long enough to help sort those out.  Make a plan, execute the plan is what I always preach.  This is something I believe in.  Problem is, in some of the stickier areas of life, I've learned it is easier to turn a blind eye and just hope everything works out right.  This is weakness.  Cowardice even.  Of what good is it to continue to strengthen the already strong if the weak continues to be neglected.  A chain is only as strong as its weakest link. 

This year will be about maintaining the strongholds and shoring up soft spots. 

Stay tuned...