Tag: run for god

God knows just what we need…

February 22, 2018

Go figure, right…God thankfully knows exactly what we need and we should trust in Him and trust that His plans are greater than ours.

This past weekend we had a fun weekend trip planned with our friends, one that we had looked forward to for months! In the stressful weeks leading up to it we (my friend and I) both vented how we couldn’t wait to have a fun and relaxing weekend with our families all together. The kids were all packing and talking about the adventures we were going to have.

I had been praying for over a month that we would all be healthy and nothing would stand in our way of going as planned (and because it was already paid for as well!). I still couldn’t help this feeling in the two weeks leading up to our weekend that someone was going to be sick or something, getting in the way of this perfect weekend from happening. Well I guess, unfortunately, my gut feeling was accurate; my daughter woke up Thursday morning with a fever. Sure enough, it was the dreaded influenza.

Side note: I was obviously very concerned about her first and foremost and was sooooo thankful for all the praying and concerned family and friends we have. Her case of the flu was much shorter than it could have been! So very thankful for that and for the power of prayer!!

Unfortunately, there was still quite a sting of disappointment in our house as we realized our weekend away was not going to happen. I have to admit I didn’t deal very well with this disappointment- I felt so badly I needed this break and looked forward to just relaxing and laughing with our friends for the weekend! I was not only looking forward to time with our friends but a fun time together as a family and time with my hubby; he’s been so busy with work and extra obligations lately. We were also supposed to take a weekend away together as our Christmas gift to each other, but after other expenses arose we decided this trip with friends was our only trip for now. So now, no trip. In turn I was a total grump for the weekend; not a very good example, I know. It’s no fun unpacking from a trip, let alone a trip you didn’t get to go on.

However, I know it could be so much worse, it could always be worse. Thankfully my daughter wasn’t worse and so far thankfully, no one else has caught it.

It took a couple days to snap out of this pity party, grump funk I was in. I started by turning to God and admitting I was being a jerk and continued to praise Him for the restored health of our daughter! Not something to take for granted, I know! But as I knew and was reminded of by my friend, it’s ok to tell God how you feel or what’s on your heart. He cares.

Yesterday I felt really blessed and felt like God was giving me a hug through the people around me. It was just little things, but they were all so appreciated.

Started my day with my running partner, which I may have taken for granted prior to this winter, because our runs together aren’t as often due to weather, and it makes me thankful for the days we do get to run together!

Next, my hubby surprised me with a card waiting for me in the car to start my day; it was super sweet and totally unexpected, and a great, much appreciated smile to start to my day. 😊

Then, this was definitely a God thing, my secret pal at work surprised me with a random gift…and not just any gift, but a devotional book and some of my favorite chocolate candy, with a sweet little note that read ‘what goes better with chocolate than God.’ How sweet and the timing was perfect. I don’t believe in coincidences. 😉

Then to top it off, this morning I was spending time reading my devotionals, including one we are doing with our church during this current season of Lent, ‘40 Days with the Holy Spirit’ by R.T. Kendall. Today was titled The Holy Spirit Overrules and talked about times when God might overrule in your life. You may have set plans, when God in turn says, ‘nope, sorry, I have something else in mind.’ Well thankfully God has got it going on, lol. He is good, He knows more than we do, and His plans are always better.

So, 1. He knew exactly what I needed – blessed me with some extra love and pick-me-ups when He knew I needed them, and 2. For whatever reason, we weren’t supposed to go this past weekend, it’s ok, I trust it was for a good reason and I accept that His plans for me are better. (I know this was just a little hiccup/small disappointment in life compared to so many other bigger issues, but I am glad I was able to learn something from it in the end.)

God is good and He cares; tell Him what’s on your heart and trust His plans for you.

Prayer warrior…

January 19, 2018

A few years ago I took a spiritual gifts test, as our pastor encouraged; I’d recommend doing this if you never have before. I had an idea of what my gifts might be, or what I thought they might be, but it was very beneficial. I feel like it was not only enlightening but encouraging, as once I knew what my gifts were I could pray about and focus on being intentional about using them.  I scored highest in intercessory prayer, which was not one that I expected or realized I guess, but after thinking about it was not surprised.

I consider myself a prayer warrior. I have so many people and concerns that I pray regularly for and have seen so many of my prayers for others answered, it’s exhilarating! Much of my time running is spent praying; praying not only for the regular needs and requests known to me, but for so many random people as well, from people that pass by me, or people in the houses that I run past, to random people that pop into my head. I truly love praying for others and even more so love seeing prayers answered and God at work! God is so good!

I also often pray for my students.  This past week I’ve been working on a mass mailing of BMI letters that are required to be sent to every student’s parents (we’ll not get into the debate of whether or not this is beneficial). Monday when I started this task, it was an in-service day, without student office visit interruptions. I, for the first time, had the idea that I should pray for each of these students as I prepare their letters; after all each one requires thought and consideration for the letter and corresponding address label.  If I have to think about each student, why not pray for them and their families! It honestly filled me with joy in doing so, and I actually enjoyed mailing all the letters out. So, if you’re reading this and are on the receiving end of my BMI letters, know that you and your family have been prayed for!  I also prayed for a revival in this small little town; how awesome would that be! 

Psalm 5:3: “In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.”

Ephesians 6:18New International Version (NIV)

 18 And pray in the Spiriti on all occasionsjwith all kinds of prayers and requests.k With this in mind, be alert and always keep on prayingl for all the Lord’s people.

Feel free to leave a prayer request! And know someone is praying for you! ❤




Busy, busy…

December 15, 2017

It’s been a busy week, busier than normal for a busy time of year! I’m busy baking today! I always enjoy taking a vacation day to help get my Christmas goodies done. Stay tuned for some Christmas baked goods recipes in the near future! I tend to make the same thing every year…What are some of your favorites? 

Been some cold, snowy runs this week but today was the coldest I believe, at 4*.  This is what dressing for 4* looks like:

Thankfully there wasn’t any wind, so it really wasn’t that bad. The snow and wearing the yak traks on my shoes really slows me down, but at least I got the miles in…today I actually got more miles in than number of degrees outside! :-p

Looking forward to to a warm shower and a day of baking! 

Dressing for the weather…

December 10, 2017

From a lot of experience running in every season and the varying weather we have in the area where I live, I’ve come to know exactly what I need to wear for different temperatures/forecasts. I usually lay my clothes out the night before, but sometimes, more often than not, you never quite know if you can trust what it’s telling you about the forecast 6-7 hours from then. (What!? You can’t trust the weather forecast? Shocking, I know!) 

So, normally for 20-30* I wear a semi-heavy shirt, light underneath and my normal running headband/earwarmer and gloves. For the teens I wear a hooded fleese and hat. You just have to figure out what works for you. So often people think I’m crazy for running in the cold temperatures but I actually prefer them. I’d run in 20* weather over 80* weather any day; you’re moving and if you dress appropriately you can manage to stay quite comfortable.

But the reason I had multiple things out this morning was because that ‘real feel’ temperature can be a real crap shoot.  Actually if you look up the definition of crap shoot, the example sentence given is regarding the weather -lol. I’ve found the ‘real feel’ is either the real deal and you’re freezing cold or it can also be pretty bogus. You just never know; hence the crap shoot. Today, headed out of town I found it was pretty bogus, as I opted to wear a hat and added a vest layer, just in case it was windy and the real feel was accurate. Thankfully I was pretty warm; however when I turned around to head back towards home there was a little more wind in my face and I was thankful I wore the added clothing; but I still didn’t feel it was as cold as the said real feel of 15*. 

Once it finally got light out, it was a beautiful morning, with the first fresh snow fall (well second, but first that I’ve ran in). It was a little slick in spots, requirng mindful short shuffling steps rather than nice long strides; but I knew heading out that the snow was definitely going to slow my pace down.  Thankful for this quiet start to my day and the beauty of the snow as we enjoy the Christmas season.

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A big responsibility…

Every morning on my way to work I listen to the Family Life radio station and like clockwork the last 3-4 minutes of my commute always consists of the radio program ‘A Word With You’ by Ron Hutchcraft. I wanted to share today’s with you because it really hits home. The title is: Driving better when you’re being watched. Here’s the part that I think grabbed my attention most: 

“You can be a reason they’re attracted to Jesus or a reason they reject Jesus-a major factor in whether they spend forever in heaven or hell. Did you know that most people who come to Jesus do it because of a Christian they know? Did you know that most people who reject Jesus do it because of a Christian they know?”  (You can listen to or read the whole program here.)

Woah. 

This isn’t the first time I’ve thought about this. I think about it quite often, especially everytime I feel like I’ve screwed up. I don’t want people, especially those who don’t know Jesus yet, to look at me and think ‘if that’s what a Christian looks like, I don’t want any part of it.’ I’m not perfect, I’m a work in progress and always will be, and I have to try my best to remain close to God so I can live the way He wants me to. Life is hard and we’re all human and speaking for myself, I can think of many, many times in the past where I shouldn’t have ‘vented’  or over reacted, or should have bit my tongue or been more patient. At least I can learn from my mistakes and try to do better.  I’m a Christian, a work in progress, and one who wants to turn people TO Jesus, not away! 

On another note, it was a great morning for a run- I love my Friday morning runs…TGIF! 40* on December 1st, I’ll take it!

Baked goods and Jesus…

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November 30, 2017

In my Run for God devotional, one of the questions this morning was: ‘What do you share with others that gives you the greatest joy?’

I have always loved sharing the food that I make, especially baked goods, with others.  At every job I’ve had, I’m always the coworker who brings in baked goods to share.  I run into people from my previous places of employment and they still comment on missing my ‘yummy baking.’  I’m thankful for my ability to bake and I do appreciate seeing people enjoy things that I’ve made.

In the past I have compared sharing Jesus to that of sharing baked goods… I don’t ever want to ‘bug’ people, but I do often invite people to church…it’s like when you have your favorite food – let’s say a luscious cheesecake – you want to share it with people, you want other people to try it too because you think they will like it!  That’s why I invite people to church, especially people close to me.  I LOVE our church, our church family, and the way God speaks through our Pastor. I love having a relationship with God and looking back and seeing how things have changed in my life for the better because of that relationship.  Why wouldn’t I want to share that with others? I want them to experience it and enjoy it as well.  It’s never about judging anyone or saying or even thinking, ‘Man, I think you really need to go to church’; not at all.  It’s always out of love and just a desire to share something so wonderful that many are missing out on.  So for my friends and family, neighbors, etc. reading this – don’t be offended when I invite you to church, just know that I love you enough to share my yummy delicious cheesecake… and my church with you.

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Back to the real world…

November 29, 2017

Back to a normal routine, including up way before dawn for an early run, usual route, favorite running partner, then to start the day back to work after a long Thanksgiving break!  The only thing out of the norm this morning was the weather/temperature!  It was an unseasonably warm morning with a temperature of 51*; beautiful morning for a run and a great way to start the day!

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Scenic run…

November 24, 2017

Sometimes you have to switch it up… I love to #run and often find myself running the same routes over and over.  I have a running friend, Whitney – the story how we met is a good one for another post another day 🙂 — anyway, when we run the same ol’ route in the early dark hours before work, its enjoyable and passes by quickly because of the company and nice chats.  However, sometimes by myself I just feel like I need to switch it up… those were my thoughts this morning when I headed out for my run.

It was a beautiful morning to run a couple scenic trails, one of which leads to a reservoir that I often forget exists.  To be honest, for being born and raised in the same small town I live in now, it might be surprising to some to know that I didn’t even know this reservoir existed until a year or two ago.  I guess it’s a hidden gem… if you like quiet, natural beauty of course.

Ps. I’ve seen people occasionally attempt to fish in this  and until today I had never been able to see the bottom … well, they are waisting their time.  It was crystal clear this morning, not nearly as deep as I thought, and not a fish anywhere to be found.  Sure is beautiful though!

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