Just Show Up

It’s a bit risky to write about something you’ve never experienced. But I’m throwing caution to the wind and doing it anyway! Just in case I don’t make it through the other side there needs to be some record that an attempt was made. Hopefully there will be a part 2 next week! This Sunday, I’m running a marathon. All 26.2 miles unless I keel over.  

Soon after turning 39, I remember listening to Jerry Lee Lewis’s hit “39 and Hold’n.” He wasn’t a Sunday School teacher so I’m not vouching for this great song. I’m not really sure what he was “hold’n” anyway. But I got to thinking, why fight off the 40’s? Rather than “39 and hold’n,” I’d rather be 40 and feisty. I determined right then and there to run a marathon in celebration of 40 years of life.

I was already doing about 12 miles a week through my 30’s but a marathon is a different beast. That’s around 30-40 miles a week of preparation. To stay married and employed meant a lot of early mornings. Just me and the pavement waiting on the world to wake up.

I don’t know how things will go on Sunday. I haven’t experienced a marathon yet. I’m trying not to fret about what’s out of my control like the wind gusts and the occasional hip flexor flare up (did I mention I am 40!) Instead, I’ve tried to focus on what is in my control: preparation and continuing to show up. That’s been the game plan for the past year: just keep showing up! 4-mile runs have evolved into 20-mile runs simply through continuing to show up. My game plan for Sunday: just keep showing up through the finish line.

No matter how it goes, I’ve already learned valuable lessons from this experience. So much of life is determined by continuing to show up especially when it’s hard. We naturally drift toward being victims of our circumstances. It’s cold, it’s rainy, I’m too tired, et cetera. There were mornings that the circumstances got the best of me. Our circumstances will either determine our decisions, or our decisions will determine our circumstances. It’s a tough reality but those are the 2 options we have every day.

Scripture reminds us of this important principle. A person will reap what they sow. This means that our decisions will eventually bear fruit in our circumstances. That’s both an exciting and sobering thought. The decision to keep showing up the past year has put me in position to run a marathon. I don’t know all that Sunday has in store but I’m looking forward to the experience. I’m just going to keep showing up.

Do the circumstances of life seem overwhelming? What decision can we make today that would impact that circumstance? Keep showing up. It’s worth it! One day soon we’ll get the joy of reaping that which we’ve sown!