Working out rewards one with many benefits. But, they do not come easily. You have to push through the sweat and the pain; you have to convince yourself the struggle is worth the end goal. I definitely experienced that this week, in more ways than one. To the right, is a picture of a very proud cyclist who pedaled her way to work. That smile turned to demise the next morning when she pedaled home…..
The day prior, I had taken my children, in the van, to the sitters. My husband likes to have the van while I’m at work because it’s easier to load the kids, perfectly understandable. So I left the van there for him to come and get. I unloaded my bike & trailer, and pedaled to work. The plan was for Mark to ride his bike to the van, and load it inside. The next morning when I got home, I noticed the van wasn’t there!?!?! I immediately felt anger towards Mark for not getting the van, because that meant I needed to go get it! I was also upset because he didn’t tell me, I could have gotten the van on the way home. So, instead of asking Mark why he didn’t get it, I just started expressing my anger….in a very unloving way. He then asked me why I didn’t just bring the van back home and pedal to work from here? I - felt- so - foolish. How could I have not thought of that!?! But instead of admitting he was right, I just focused on the fact that he didn’t tell me.
I had to go get the van right then because Mark had a meeting to get to, and I needed it for a morning appointment. So I unhitched my trailer and left, pedaling with furry. When I arrived and loaded my bike, something occurred to me. If I would have gotten the van on the way home, It would have been a pain to load my bike and trailer. This way I only had to load my bike. Driving back home, I started thinking….what was I really upset about? One- I was upset that my coworker was late getting to work, and two- I was upset that I was too foolish to realize I should have brought the van back home. I was really only upset at myself, and my circumstances. But instead of admitting that, I decided to make it all seem like Mark’s fault. My poor husband apologized, and was genuinely sorry he forgot to tell me. But it was I who needed to apologize.
I know my anger mostly stems from the fact that I can feel so stupid sometimes. After having my children, it has gotten much worse. It just feels like I only have half a brain. This frustrates me to no end, and I ask God, “WHY!?! Why do I have to be this way?” But then I hear a still, small voice say, “You need opportunities to respond in love, and show grace. Just like I do for you.” God’s greatest desire for our lives is to complete the good work He started in us! Life will always give us challenges, there will always be trials. It is how we handle them that makes us who we are.
“….being confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus.” ~Philippians 1:6~
So while running can give us many health benefits, you have to work through the pain to achieve it. Our walk with God gives us many spiritual benefits, but you have to deal with the trials. When I run, I choose to believe that I will become something better. When I trust in God, I choose to live and respond the way that He would, so that I can become more like Christ. Both take a lot of discipline and a lot of heartache. But the end result is so worth it! Or so I can imagine. When I finish the race of life, I want be able to stand before the throne of God and say,
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”
~ II Timothy 4:7 ~
~ II Timothy 4:7 ~
I asked that same question when I saw Rebecca a couple of weeks ago, WHY? Why am I forgetting so much and making so many mistakes? We live in a fast paced society this day and age and we are expected to perform perfectly. We are too hard on ourselves and too busy. She explained to your Grandma and I that we need, as women, to stop multi-tasking. Your dad says that there are studies that have been done with business'that have shown that multi-tasking does not work. We need to focus on the one task before us and do that well. Of course your Grandma and I are older and we really do need to heed to her advice because we are older. You and other young mothers don't have a choice all the time and you do need to multi-task. But knowing that it doesn't work so well you can really concentrate on the task at hand and not add too many tasks at that moment. Mom and I were glad to get this advice from her because we are about to go out of our minds thinking that we are losing our minds. We're NOT, we are just trying to fill up our minds to two many tasks at hand! We just need to focus on that one task before us and do it well!!!! Love you!!
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