Over the past month I’ve been on a journey through the program, “Couch 2 Five K,” which I renamed, for my own purposes, “Courage to 5K.” And it has taken every ounce of courage I have in my body to continue on this journey.
Today was week 7 day 2 on the plan. I had to workout indoors on my machine because it is too cold for running outdoors at the park. Well, let me rephrase that. I do not own cold weather workout clothing, so it is too cold to run outdoors in shorts and a tank.
I pulled up the app on my phone and made sure my “running” playlist was selected for my listening distraction, er, I mean enjoyment. I scanned the schedule for week 7 day 2. It read: walk for a 5 minute warm up . run for 26 minutes. walk for a 5 minute cool down. I took a deep breath, stepped on my machine and hit the start button.
The music began pumping thru my earbuds and I started moving. The five minute warm up passed like it was five seconds. The app buzzed and C25K’s voice said, “Run for twenty-six minutes.” It was time to go for it. Twenty-six minutes of running pleasure. another deep breath.
It was the most I’ve tried to accomplish. ever. Six minutes and two songs passed. I was doing just fine. Up until the thirteen minute mark, things were normal, nothing out of the ordinary. When C25K said, “You are halfway done,” something happened. Something remarkable. I was strong. My legs were moving because I wanted to run, not because I was forcing them to keep going. Shoulders back, arms pumping, I was prepared to go the distance. I had my eyes on the prize. I wanted to hear my app say, “You have completed twenty six minutes of running.” Nothing was going to stop me.
As I approached the twenty two minute mark, music came on that propelled me even farther, harder. And I chose to run as hard as I could for the final four minutes. My legs ached, sweat trickled down my back and my breathing was a bit labored. It took perseverance like I’d never known before, but nothing else mattered. I was on fire. Everything that was a weight to me before, had been incinerated in the presence of a fiery courage. amazing.
After the cool down, I had a few moments to catch my breath and think about what happened. I found myself in a new place of prayer and submission, with these words from Philippians 3 in mind:
7 But what things were gain to me, these I have counted loss for Christ. 8 Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith;10 that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, 11 if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead.
12 Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
The Holy Spirit truly used running to speak to me. loudly. Running with the end goal in mind is so much like what the Christian life should look like. “forgetting the past,” “pressing toward the prize,” “conforming to His likeness.” It all takes courage. And it requires a letting go; its a blatant disregard for all of the things that I used to care about because they don’t matter to the cause of Christ. When I choose to live with that kind of courage, that’s when there is a promise of victory at the finish line.
Heavenly Father, Keep my eyes on the finish line and the calling you have placed on my life. Help me to be determined to complete the course with courage. Give me the faith to pursue your will with strength. I want to hear You say that I’ve finished well at the end of the run. amen.
(I thought I should be completely clear, in an effort to not be disingenuous – when I am working out indoors, it is on an elliptical on the “hill” setting to resemble what I know it feels like running out side as much as possible. but, I don’t know what verb to use for that – ellipticalling? I have no idea – regardless – the victory over the couch, the courage to workout is still there. )
daily portion 