Truly Amazing! Much More Than I Can Ask or Imagine

Well after a year where I was blessed to have trained in so many places as I trained in Wyoming, Colorado, Florida, Texas, California, England, and Ohio I broke down and wrote this entry. It is so easy to say what you did to obtain such great results, however I did this before and it all came back. What is the true difference this time around? Well have a look at this entry and I think you will see my perspective. For me I guess I liked beating my head against the wall but I finally gave up and I am forever changed and grateful! Enjoy!

September 8, 2009

Seventeen miles and Matt running in the same sentence! You know God has to be at work! More than I can ask or imagine has been on my mind throughout this entire journey and I would say He is not letting me down one bit at all. This past Saturday I did 17 miles at a 9:07 pace with the first 13 done in 8:59 pace. I was hardly breathing during the first 13 so I think I could have kept a much faster pace. What will that pace be on the 26th of September? That I think will be up to the Lord! My only aim is to somehow glorify him with my meager 13.1 mile journey! I have thought about how to show my gratefulness to my King and I know one thing for sure and that is that I need to give my body as a sacrifice. I cannot make anything up or plan to glorify God I need to just be me and do what I can to make sure He is seen on that morning.

1 Cor. 9:25
“25Now every athlete who goes into training conducts himself temperately and restricts himself in all things. They do it to win a wreath that will soon wither, but we [do it to receive a crown of eternal blessedness] that cannot wither.”

What does this mean when It comes to running this 13.1 mile race? Today this came through to me and really has got my mind wandering! I think the best part of this verse is that we can all win the race and get the crown. When I run the race on the 26th will I run it for myself or will I run it to serve others? What does that mean? When I run I will be seeking the presence of God and asking Him what I need to do for His glory! Hopefully people will see me and get a glimpse of God, maybe they will see what He has done in me and ask themselves what can He do for them?

How easy it is to look at what I did and claim that it was done in my power! I put in the miles, I put in the weight training, I disciplined my eating habits, I went and paid for the trainer, I bought the gym membership, I decided to go and do it, I, I, I! The issue I have is that I could not have coordinated all these things myself. I had to be put in a position to afford the gym and the trainer. I had to know that the trainer I choose was a fellow brother (worshiper at that). I had to know what food was best and how the body works! I had to know that my trainer would edge me to the goal that I wanted to accomplish over 2 years ago a ½ marathon. I had to know that I would have the support of a wonderful family and many friends keeping me motivated. Too many things had to be in line.

In reality God had to get my attention and help me understand that I needed Him! He did this through prayer and lots of it! So many times I wanted to quit, give up, cheat, fake it! Each time God said trust in me, Love me, depend on me, know that I am God and I can do more than you think! So when times got tough I would see God even more, He would send His presences.

Many of my runs were hard, even to a point that I wanted to stop and found good reasons to justify stopping but each time God would pick me up and I would feel like I was gliding! I would simply look up to the sky and see the clouds pulling me up and carrying me down the path. Then I would praise God even more.

I often think about the past years and how I lost 70+ pounds only to put it back on. What happened and why is this time different? This time I did not try and do it on my own. I got help! The Lord heard my cry for help and put people, things, objectives into place! God was all over this experience and continues to do so. As I move forward there is nothing I do not believe I can do if God puts it on my heart. This experience makes me more confident that God has a plan for me and that I am running in order to accomplish the plan. He gave me a dream of a prayer ministry and I can believe He will fulfill it. God has built up my faith in this experience, He has move my thought past what I think can be done and made me believe it is what He can do through me! I depend on Him because of what He has done for me. What can I do in order to glorify Him? The only thing I can do is give Him my body, time, and effort all of it!