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Half-Marathon Wows and Whoas

October 25, 2009
So, we ran our half-marathon a week ago Sunday, and I have hardly given it another thought since that day – unless someone asked about it. Don’t know why I do this – work so hard toward a goal, train, pray, read up on, get anxious over -finally perform the task and then nonchalantly go on with life as usual without pausing to celebrate or even consider what just happened. Recently though, Robert has been preaching through the book of Joshua, and in it God commands the Israelites to do exactly those 2 things: celebrate and consider, or as Robert put it – be mindful of the “the wow,” and “the whoa.”
Brett and Jenna – sweet friends from church – and running partners!

I don’t plan (or desire) to celebrate by throwing myself a congratulatory party, but I have been trying to celebrate in my heart and mind – which each have a terrible tendency to focus on negative things, tasks incomplete, areas of struggle, worries, problems, what ifs, etc. So instead of those things…..”wow” things: I just ran 13.1 miles! That was the goal I was working toward! That is an accomplishment! That takes strength and stamina, and I did it!”

And the “whoa” part is stopping to consider what just happened: The Lord cared about my desire to run a half-marathon with my husband. He fully healed a hip problem I was having (leftover childbirth injury!) that prevented me from running for several weeks and finally sent me to the physical therapist. He also heard and answered the many prayers for my stomach that was getting pretty sick on the longer runs all through training. ( I thought I might have to bow out of the race when the time came because of the severe sickness.) Not only did I have no stomach problems the day of the race, I also realized that He showed me exactly what to eat the day before and morning of the race. I had tried all sorts of eating/not-eating routines with no success, but ended up trying something a little different the weekend of the race which involved rice cakes, almond butter, a banana, Indian food, and Kombucha. (More on this new fascination later!) The point is that God was in it, leading me, listening to me, speking to me, revealing Himself to me even regarding something as trivial as a half-marathon! After all, no one needs to run a half-marathon. But still, He cares….He was there with me……Whoa!

After the Race – quickly using the camera’s self timer – we were freezing!

It was such a fun and memorable experience – and so I try to recall and be thankful for….the cold and rain, Jenna’s absolute steady 10 minute pace that kept me going, a chance to chat and catch up with her, a night away with my husband, dinner at Whole Foods, his big hug and smile from him upon finding me at the finish, his coat to stop my shivering, being so thankful for the cap I bought in case it rained (it was dripping by the end), Brett’s gifts of Gu packs for Robert (those make me REALLY sick) and the seat warmers that he tried to keep secret, seeing the full marathon winner come in just minutes behind us, the wonderful GPS that got us to the Cook’s home, a warm shower, hanging out with friends for lunch, the ability to drink coffee on the way home with Robert (couldn’t even think about coffee when I was getting sick), the huge snowflakes and all-out snow storm that hit as we left for home, and 3 happy children because of Sarah and Conner’s fun and indulgent babysitting techniques, ibuprofen, a comfy mattress and electric blanket to drift help me drift off to sleep that night. Lots of “wows” and “whoas.” His gifts are so good. I pray I would practice this thinking more and never take for granted His presence and His help.

This I recall to my mind,
Therefore I have hope.
The LORD’S lovingkindnesses indeed never cease,
For His compassions never fail.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
“The LORD is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I have hope in Him.”

Lamentations 3:21-24

6 thoughts on “Half-Marathon Wows and Whoas”

  1. What a great reminder of how important it is to recognize God's providence, even in "our" achievements! I am so glad He enabled you to accomplish this with Robert. What a special gift!

  2. Oh no, you're really a Western Mass. citizen now if you've been pulled into the Kombucha cult! 😉

    From someone who's never done any more running than to catch a bus, many congratulations to both of you on the half-marathon – that really is a huge accomplishment.

  3. I keep hearing about this Kombucha business – I can't wait to hear more.

    I am so, so proud of you, Melanie!! (And Robert, too!) This is such an incredible accomplishment. I love your reflections on it and the amazing way God has had His hand in all of it. I'll be thinking about the Wows and the Whoas. Love it.

  4. Congratulations! What a wonderful accomplishment for both of you. I'm with Anne – I can't even imagine running that kind of a distance. And so amazing how God led you through the whole thing, even down to the food!

  5. Thanks everyone!

    Kombucha posts coming soon! 🙂

    (Ha! Didn't know it was a W. Mass thing – I heard about it from another pastor's wife in Connecticut, and have a cookbook with a recipe! Amazing stuff!)

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