Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls! Hebrews 12:1-3 {MSG}

That’s a long scripture … but oh how I encourage you to read it slowly and thoroughly!

We headed down to the beach last week for a little vacation and as we drove to dinner that first night, I noticed a sign that said “Beach Run.” Intrigued, I looked it up while we were at dinner. Sure enough, the very next morning there’d be a 5K right down the beach from us! I was pretty sure I’d be found running my little heart out on that beach the next day. Hence the photos above!

Before I entered, I was determined to run the whole 5K. Didn’t matter to me how slow I went {In fact, I may’ve been pacing with a 9yo and her grandpa … sad, but true story!}, I just wanted to run the whole thing.

Sweet friends … so many thoughts passed through my mind during those 37:19 minutes. Thoughts of endurance, faith, running someone else’s race and not staying focused on our own.

I’m going to share those thoughts over the next few days, but first I’d like to start with thoughts I had of preparation, research, and trust.

It struck me that someone had to have researched the tides and weather patterns in order to have a beach run on that particular day at that particular time.

There were over 200-ish people running and if the tide were high at the time of the run, it would’ve been a very wet situation! You see, as I sit right now typing this, we have some “weather” surrounding us, causing a high tide and not much beach to run on.

I certainly didn’t give any thought to what the tide would be. I trusted we’d have a big smooth beach to run on. In fact, all 200 of us showed up trusting there’d be plenty of beach to run on … and there was.

Thinking about the research that was most likely done, got me to thinking about the prophets and disciples who “researched” for us. They were there in the trenches … living it out every day. It’s all there recorded in God’s Word. Time and time again they encountered God’s faithfulness, His great love, His forgiveness, His grace, and His mercies.

Says so right there in the verse above, “… all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on?”

So if we can read, meditate on, and believe in these beautiful truths lived out in God’s Word, I wonder what makes it so difficult for us to live it out in our here-and-now lives? Why don’t we just “show up” and believe it to be true? Why would we sometimes rather walk through a 40 year desert period {Numbers 14}, instead of accepting, trusting, and believing in the great power of God.

His promises are true. His promises are proven.

I invite you to join me tomorrow with more thoughts on this “running the race” thing.

running the race … {post two}
running the race … {post three}

Have you heard? Beginning today, I’m hosting a Facebook study group on my e-book 31 days of faith. Each day in August, I’ll walk through the book with you in a more in-depth sort of way. My hope is to breathe encouragement into your day, to help you see Jesus, and to show you joy in the middle of a trial.

If you’re on Instagram and would like to join in the study in a different way, the hashtag is #31faith. I can be found as tmstier.

Additional details found here. 31 days of faith buying options found here.