I had every intention of being at Rock City Church this morning for the start of the “F-Bomb” series. I really did. However the sermon notes this week are going to be a recap of the Columbus Half Marathon which kept me from attending church. Here’s how it all went down…
On Friday night my wife, a friend and I all went downtown to “packet pickup” for the race. Both my wife and our friend were running in this race. I remembered that a good friend of mine had signed up (and paid for) the full marathon but wasn’t going to be able to run due to an injury. I called him and asked if he wanted me to pick up his packet too. At least he could still have the shirt. He kindly offered to let me have his race number and use it to run the half marathon as well. I laughed and explained I have been recovering from a (most likely) partially torn hamstring and battling achilles pain for weeks. I had not trained or run more than 5 miles at one time since the Nashville Half Marathon in April.
Then we got inside the convention center….
If you’ve ever been to an event like that, you know there’s a buzz around the place. There’s an excitement for the race that gets into your blood and its hard to not want to run. I gave it some thought, called Jeff back and he kindly said “it’s all yours”. This morning I ran a half marathon in 2:10 (9:57 pace) with a sleeve around my tender hamstring, a brace around my achilles and a smile on my face. I enjoyed this race as much, if not more, than the 13 other half marathons I’ve run. The time was irrelevant. The pace didn’t matter. It was all about the moment. It was God restoring one more thing in my life after months of frustration.
It’s a long story but due to terrible traffic and a lack of cash for parking, I was literally the LAST GUY to start this race. They were cleaning up the starting corrals when I got there. I told my wife I felt like “I am legend”. Within the first mile I made it to the “Walkers” and slowly worked my way past the 5 hour and other various pace teams. It was wonderful to see each story from the back of the race to the middle of the pack.
As my wife (who rocked a 1:53 by the way) and I debriefed afterwards, I told her that God has humbled me in this process. Even today. You take for granted being able to just “go for a run” and knocking out a pace that is 8 minute-ish. You take for granted health and being able to push your body to the limit. Today I started a race alone. Today I ran with those that will accomplish the same medal by walking and cherishing that. Today I was forced to go slow and “listen” to my body to prevent further injury. I’m so thankful and humbled by this opportunity. Lesson learned.
As I ran the final mile, my playlist belted out the song “God is Able” by Hillsong. Pure joy swept across my face. Our God is Able! In His time. At His pace. He has restored so much in my life the past month or so. This was the pinnacle. This was the top. I’ll never forget that.
Special thank you to my friend Jeff. This wouldn’t have been possible without you. Get well soon brother. We’ve got more races to run together.
Good work, Sir. Sometimes God’s plan involves running at the last minute to remind you how far you’ve come and where you are going.
Thanks John and you’re absolutely right. Had no idea I would do this, let alone complete it. I can’t begin to count the amount of times I had a big ol’ smile on my face throughout the race. It was just awesome.