Today's 14-miler was awesome! Jackie and I hit the treadmills at 7:00 and cranked 'em out in just under two hours (while watching retro 80's music videos on VH1--hello Debbie Gibson!). :) I can't say it enough...I am SO thankful for a training buddy! I've had great ones in the past (Amy and Ashley), and I have a great one now. That's just the Lord being good to me.
I'm going to be honest with you all. One of the things the Lord has been teaching me is about faithfulness. I am a CHRONIC starter/stopper. As a matter of fact, as a really revealing point, I was packing up my bookshelf yesterday and almost EVERY one of the books had a bookmark lodged in the middle where I'd abandoned the book for something else. Finishing strong in just about everything is just tremendously hard for me.
When it comes to training, though, it's different. For some reason, while it's incredibly hard, I can be faithful to a marathon training program. I asked the Lord about this in my quiet time this morning and I think the Holy Spirit let me in on a great insight...
In life there are GOOD intentions and there are GOD intentions. Personally, I have always struggled with trying to "do" enough things for God. I'm constantly trying to please Him by doing anything and everything I can to keep His approval.
Memo to me: Enough will never be enough in this case. But somehow, that doesn't stop me. I keep saying yes to so many things and starting new projects that I think will get me closer to God. But is He really asking me to do them? Honestly, not usually. What they wind up doing is taking me farther away from Him because I'm distracted from His plan. Yes, the intention is good, but as a wise person once told me, "Even the right thing at the wrong time is still the wrong thing." Plus, I think the biggest issue is just understanding that He loves me and is pleased with me regardless of what I do. I can't earn my way into His love. That's a free gift that He gives me (and all of us) for no other reason than because that's who He is and part of His character.
So, today's lesson is actually pretty profound in my life. This marathon training is a GOD intention, I know that for sure. So, I pray that the Lord will increase my faithfulness and help me to stay strong for the remaining 14 weeks. In the meantime, it's time to trim the fat from my lifestyle. To stop trying to do enough and earn my way to God and to pay attention to what He is actually desiring from my life at that time. Maybe then, when I'm involved in more GOD intentions, I'll find myself able to be faithful in all things. . . Even in finihing books on occasion. :)
Ciao!
-Jill
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