That verse has so much meaning to me. I know it was not written about or to a runner specifically but for anyone just going through life. God is our ultimate strength in any situation, and with him, anything is possible. As I run my first Ultra-marathon tomorrow morning since last October, that verse will be one of the many I repeat to myself as I try to make it through the race. As an ends, running really does mean much, but it can be used as a means to get so much more out of life. Not only can one obtain an increased level of health from running, but also in some extraordinary cases, one can use their talents in running to change the world one step at a time.
One of the most famous American marathoner runners, Ryan Hall, is a strong Christian that utilizes his amazing talents to help raise money to fight worldwide poverty (http://thestepsfoundation.org/). Another less publicized runner, Sam Felsenfeld, is currently running 60 marathons in 2010 to raise both awareness and money for the fight against autism, through the Train 4 Autism foundation (http://www.operationjack.org/). These types of ends for running both fascinate me and inspire me. I hope that one day if I were in either man’s position, that I would have the strength to do half as much as they are doing.
After learning about Sam Felsenfeld’s quest to run 60 marathons in 2010, I immediately knew that it was something special. I have run 2 road marathons and know how difficult a task just one is and cannot even fathom how difficult 60 in one year would be. After my most recent one in Atlanta last November, it took me until just this April to feel my body was anywhere near ready to begin training for another race.
Now that I am back in training mode, I want to utilize my running and my personal quest to qualify for the Boston marathon to help Sam in his quest to raise awareness for autism. In my cases, this will require significant training and improvement in my running to achieve the qualifying standard of 3:10, which is a 7:15 pace for the 26.2 miles.
In conversations with Sam, we discussed having him come pace me for my next road marathon, the St. Jude Memphis Marathon. This marathon would bring Sam’s total for the year to an astounding 61. I have a really good feeling about this race, with my wife Lacey having used it to qualify for Boston, and now having the opportunity to have a man with such impressive running credentials offer to pace me. It is difficult to be confident about something as daunting as a marathon but I am confident that I can do it. Jesus said that with faith, one could move mountains, so as I continue to grow in my faith I know that a 3:10 marathon is always within reach if I am willing to go for it. In doing so, I hope to inspire others to do what they dream of doing.
So, join me as I support Sam with my running passion and support any way that you can. Any donation amount to my donation page (http://operationjack.kintera.
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