HAVING FINISHED MY LEG of the Big Sur International Marathon Relay, I decided to take the extra time to walk the second leg of the relay and enjoy the early spring morning strolling along the Big Sur coastline.
It was warming nicely as I began walking to the next transition point about 5 miles up the road, and I thought it would be a good time to walk and pray and worship the Lord in the quietness of the new morning. But things would soon change. About a mile into my walk the wind began to blow, and the fog began to roll in. My sweat-laden clothes only enhanced the cold wind blowing into my face. The farther north I walked, the stronger the wind blew and the damper the air became. But I continued on, praying, singing, and trying to worship the God who created all this beauty before me.
When I shared this above scenario with a few people this past week they gazed at me with the quizzical look that said, “Why didn’t you just turn around and return to where you started, and wait there, where things were warmer?” My answer? “I don’t know,” I said, ”I guess I just had determined to walk forward, and going back did not seem like an option to me.”
In life, like in a marathon, the elements of weather are part of the race. Cold or hot, windy or calm, all these add to the experience. In life, like in a marathon, going back is not part of the equation. WE may stop running. We may hobble to the finish. We may even wait to get picked up by the “shag-wagon,” but going back is not an option.
Head winds will hit us, but we must keep moving forward. Slowly. Struggling. Cold. Alone. Praying for the sun to break through the fog, for the winds to turn, but we still move forward. Knowing that for those who finish the race a crown of glory awaits.
Run on, friend, run on!