As most of you know, on Saturday I ran a half marathon.
That is 13.1 miles people.
13.1 miles.
I repeat.
13.1 miles.
5 months ago, I couldn’t even run 1 full mile, and that is not an exaggeration.
And here I am, 5 months later, running 13.
It’s insane.
Most of you know that I am not an athletic person. Like at all. I don’t do physical activity unless I am forced, but running this race was my choice, and I was determined to do it from the start. I heard about World Vision in May, and for some reason decided it was something that I wanted to do. (Don’t ask me why because I honestly don’t know)
I started following the running schedule, exercising multiple days a week, and I hated it, but I kept on going.
It was a lot easier training in the summer because I could run whenever I wanted, but it got hard when school started because of homework and all the various other activities that come about. But somehow I still found the time to keep running.
About one month ago, my mom decided she was going to run the race with me, because I did not want to run it by myself. My mom is like a mad exercise ninja, so it was no big deal for her.
The race was hard. it was freezing outside, my body was aching, I was tired, and I literally had to go to the bathroom like every two miles, but I was determined to reach my goal of finishing in under 3 hours. And that’s exactly what we did!
It was exhilarating—having random strangers yelling for you, holding up really funny signs, giving you high fives, handing you water, etc. It was awesome seeing so many people running at the same time, and it was even cooler seeing so many people that you know running with you for the same cause.
If you would have told me 6 months ago that I would be running a half marathon in October, I would have laughed in your face. I would have laughed so hard. But here I am.
Our World Vision Team raised $200,000 just for this one race. I’m not sure if that’s a lot to them, but I still think it’s pretty cool! We raised enough money to give 4,000 children clean water for the rest of their lives—that’s huge!!
It was so cool seeing so many people that I know and love come together to exceed their personal roadblocks and run for the Lord! And I am so glad I got to be a part of it.
1 Corinthians 9:24-27
24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. 25 Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. 26 Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. 27 No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.
