Running your own Race in Life..5 Simple Lessons.

"GOOO Anita, You are behind, You gotta GO!"

 There are so many great lessons that I learn when running a race. You do not have to be a runner at all to learn a few of these lessons. The apostle Paul used many metaphors in the New testament that related to running and linked with living life with strength, perseverance and being a good testimony. I would like to share a few with you that are great reminders for me and my walk.

Focus On your Race- The only one in life that has to answer for themselves is Themselves. Keep your eyes in your own lane. If I am not careful I will look at others when running and also in life. I will compare myself to them and their gifts and talents. When I look at others I can feel discouraged or defeated before I even start. My success is different than others. We all have our own ingredients that we are made up of, truly successful people don’t keep their eyes on everyone else’s progress. They keep their eyes in their own lane.
If you measure your success relative to how everyone else is doing you’ll probably end up far below your potential.
Keep your Head in the Game- Running a race is not just a test of physical strength and endurance it is very strategic. So is life. We can not go through life letting our emotions steer us. How many times do we hear someone say, "Follow your Heart". My Heart is what leads to me goals and desires but it is not what is going to fulfill these. You have to have a plan of action. Knowledge, discernment, and instruction is vital. And it is equally important to not just know it BUT follow it. There was a man that I was listening to in Boston that said he wanted to run a 3:20 marathon. He knew the course very well and was physically prepared to do so. He also knew how much strategy was involved to pull this off. He finished in 3:45! He did not follow the advice of those who had ran it. He did not listen to what he KNEW. He got caught up in the emotion of the race. Let your heart produce goals but use your Head to direct you. Our heart is where passion is birthed and if not careful can sink your ship.
You are known by the company you keep- I have just had this conversion with my 11 year old. If you want to achieve greatness surround yourself around those that are great. But if you keep company with those  that do not have the same ambition or drive as you, you are going to be weighed down. Good fellowship and company is vital to a victorious life. I am encompassed around people that love and support me. That pick me up when I am down and encourage and motivate me to be a better me. They graciously counsel me knowing that I will receive their advice as love. Having a teachable heart is a key to being surrounded by people that have more to offer than you may have to share. I remember being so excited to see Andy at the 16 mile mark only for his first words to be "ANITA you have got to GOOO, You are way behind." This was not what I had expected to hear or even what I wanted to hear but Andy knew it was what I needed to hear. This statement was going to deliver more pain and endurance than I had to muster but it was presented with Love. Andy knew what my potential was, he believed in me and at that time probably even believed in me MORE than I believed in myself.
You can not pace everyone in- Many of us want to help and encourage others. It feels good to be wanted or needed. We can do this for a while but if not managed it can slow your pace down and hinder you from your own task. In Boston I was thrilled to be accompanied by these to Angels, Danielle and Carrie. They both asked me to pace them to the finish. But when I came to mile 16 I realized that it actually handicapped me. I so badly did not want to loose their companionship but I was not running my own race anymore. There are people in our lives we love dearly and want so badly to help and encourage. We can still love them and encourage them from a different angle. But ultimately they have to run their own race. You can not do it for them. This decision comes with a bit of heartbreak and grief. It hurt to not see Danielle next to me. But she would not have wanted me to not run my race to its fullest. WHY? Because she knew what I desired and she wanted that for me as well. It is Love, selfless Love. True love wants you to be the best you can without strings attached. True love is not insecure or self centered. She knew that even though I may have gone ahead of her she actually never left my heart, thoughts or prayers.
 If you do not Win every race you are still a Winner- I have done many races. I have never gotten a 1st
Place Overall Medal. But after every race I feel like a Champion. I know that I have given my all, that I never quit, and that I did the best I could. This Trophy does not have to stand on a dresser or hang from your neck. The trophy is in YOU. It is knowing that you did Your race with integrity, hard work, perseverance and strength. That you encouraged someone along the way as you would want, that you were not just a consumer but a supplier as well. It is the Joy of Running, The Love of Life. It is not how fast you reach the finish but how well you do getting there.

Verses with Vision:

• 1 Corinthians 9:24 – 24 Do you not know that those who run in a race all run, but one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may obtain it.
• Galatians 5:7 – 7 You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?
• Philippians 2:16 – 16 holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.   
• Hebrews 12:1-3 – 1 Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. 

Anita