I’ve had “run a half marathon” on my bucket list for almost a decade now. I eventually started getting serious enough to change my list to read “run a half marathon by the time you are thirty.” I am running in a race in just two short weeks. I am turning thirty in just three short weeks. (There’s nothing like waiting until the last minute.) God willing, I’m going to cross that finish line and accomplish my goal. I’m proud of the progress and thankful for a ton of encouragement that has gotten me over the “I can’t do this” and the “I don’t want to do this” humps.

SURPRISE
Do you want to know what the biggest surprise in all of this has been? It’s how having a plan (with tangible goals), evaluating progress each day, and staying encouraged have made this whole process relatively… well… easy.

And yet, here’s the list that I had stacked up against me:

1. I’m not a runner.
2. I’ve been diagnosed with asthma for most of my life.
3. The sports I enjoy playing least contain the most running.
4. I am really good at quitting any sort of physical goal.

Prior to 2010 the longest I had ever run was a 5K. Prior to last month I had never run more than a 10K. And then last Friday I ran 10 miles. My knees hurt and my body shook, but I just did it.

DO THE WORK
Gang- as you set goals for this year my hope is that your spiritual workout takes priority on your list. Being healthy and honoring God with our bodies and physical goals is important, but not at the expense of our hearts and minds. Have you ever read the whole Bible? Ever memorized a verse before? Have you ever tried talking to God first thing when you wake up each day?

I don’t know where you are in your relationship with God or which spiritual goals you should aim for this year, but I do know that a step forward is a step forward! Set a goal for 2012 that will draw you closer to the King of History. Run fast and run hard after him!

POINTERS
If nothing else, running has helped me to learn the following about goal setting.

• Make a tangible, realistic goal.  (I want to read Ezekiel through Revelation by the end of 2012)
• Vocalize your goal to someone who can help encourage you.  (My husband and I both shared our goals)
• Reevaluate at the end of the first week or month – is your goal still realistic?  (Do I need to devote more time?)
• Change up the routine from time to time.  (Sometimes I read from a different translation or at a different time in the day.)
• Walking is still moving. Just keep moving forward.  (Some days I can read a whole book of the Bible in one sitting and other days I only make it through a verse or two.)
• Don’t beat yourself up if you miss a day or if your just off your game. Pick it back up tomorrow.  (Don’t let guilt keep you away from a gift!)

If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing even on our lamest of days. Your efforts will be rewarded!

“But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.”

-2 Chronicles 15:7, NIV

If you want your story to be an adventure, invest time with the Master Storyteller!

Living out His Story,
Ginger