I’m Trying To Quit…

Well, this isn’t easy, but it needs to be done. I have made a decision that I believe will help me and help others. I feel like it is a much needed tuneup.

For this journey up to Easter called “Lent, I am giving up complaining. I know it sounds a bit odd, but I have found myself complaining more than I should.

I believe that there is a very fine line between a statement and a complaint. Saying, “Wow! There is a lot of traffic” in much different than “Sheesh! This traffic is ridiculous!”.

What is the difference? I believe that it is in the attitude of the heart. I truly have nothing to complain about in life.

I’m healthy. (Which means I am able to keep running) I have a wonderful wife and kids. I am blessed with plenty of friends. I have a wonderful job. All with the comforts of 1st world amenities.

So, for the next several weeks leading up to Easter Sunday, I’m trying to quit. Trying is a big word, but it is important to start the process.

“Do everything without grumbling or arguing”

Philippines 2:14

(Ironically, I am already having this put to the test, as I’m making constant mistakes as I type this which is…DEEP BREATH…Just fine!)

Quit something. Go make a difference. Always run by faith!

Let me know if there’s anything you plan to give up as a lifestyle tuneup.

A Surprise In The Mailbox

I was a bit surprised to find this on the outside of a Mudwater box that arrived in my mailbox today…

Whoa! This stopped me in my tracks.

Am I a leader, or a follower? Do I need to be in the majority? Or, am I comfy being in the minority?

I am pausing and reflecting.

In the busyness of the day, I find it to be a struggle to pause and reflect. There’s just so much to do, you know?

But, isn’t there great benefit in taking a few minutes to pause before moving forward? I find that looking back helps me see what’s coming ahead. When I reflect on how I handled a situation in the past, it helps me with how I can handle it in upcoming days.

Think of it as looking in the rearview mirror. You see where you’ve been, and you see if something is approaching. YET, if you spend all of your time looking in the rearview mirror, you’ll never enjoy the journey, and challenges ahead.

As a runner, it’s fun to look at my training times from 1 year ago. Am I faster? Slower? What was the temp on this same day a year ago? How did I perform then? How am I performing now? Reflecting helps me see my year-to-year gains, and the areas in which I’m decreasing.

I encourage you to heed the words of Mark Twain to “pause and reflect”. We all need it. Jesus even paused and reflected.

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 

Mark 1:35

Pause and Reflect. Go make a difference. Always run by faith.

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Stop Fighting The Demons

Ever read the Dale Carnegie book, “How to Win Friends and Influence People”? He says, “There’s no sweeter sound to one’s ear than the sound of his/her name.”  Your name has meaning. Even nicknames. Nicknames are said to be the most endearing, almost like a shared secret. Like Sting. Lead singer of the Police. They gave him that name because he liked to wear yellow and black shirts. Besides, Sting sounds a bit cooler than his real name, Gordon Sumner.

I think of the story in the Bible, Mark 5, where Jesus goes out of his way to meet up with a demon-possessed man. (true!) “And Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”

A name means that you’re more than a social security number, or an ID at college. Jesus was always concerned with names.  I find it interesting that Jesus is making a point to show this man that he matters by asking a name.  Jesus was searching for the man that was hidden inside this tormented body.

Years ago, I came out of a dark time in life. I had made some poor decisions and wondered if God could repair it. I even doubted whether I was worth fixing.

I remember, through that time, I asked my wife why she kept believing in me. I will never forget her words, “I knew you were in there“.

I was tormented with guilt and shame. Oh that Shame thing… not healthy! But my wife, and others, spoke life into me and helped me realize that I could turn it around. Reminding me that I really do matter.

You’re more than the sum of your poor choices. Jesus – and me – we know you matter. You’re loved and have purpose. Your name matters. You’re not just a number, a data point, a nobody.

Have you ever felt like you were facing something so large and overwhelming that you doubted God could handle it?  A time when the circumstances or challenge seemed to outweigh what you thought God could do?

If you’re living in what you feel is a mess today, and think it is too big, this story reminds us that Jesus sees you and I in our mess, and he will walk with you and me as we go through it.

YOU matter! GO make a difference. ALWAYS run by faith!

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My Wife Taught Me A Valuable Lesson

Little fact about me, I LOVE things to be clean, and in their place. (I think I get this from my Grandma). Her house was always clean, and always in order. Everything had its place, and was always in-order. When things are a mess, and out of place, it literally makes me anxious.

That said, you’ll always find my side of the bed nice and tidy. My car is very clean. In fact, I use the car wash 5 times a week. And my side of the closet is organized by color.

My wife, Patty, doesn’t have this same “calling”.

Now, before you think that this blog is about doggin’ on my wife, Patty, hold up! Patty has a cleaning passion that I do not. To quote the Prophet, Don Henley, “I’ve been tryin’ to get down, to the heart of the matter…”.

Patty is a deep cleaner. I am not. I like things put away on the surface, so that the room is pleasing to the eye. Patty goes even deeper than that. She’ll make sure baseboards are clean. Spots are out of the carpet. And dust is removed from the vent covers. Patty gets, “to the heart of the matter”.

There’s an important lesson in the way Patty cleans. 1 Samuel 16:7 says, “Humans look at outward appearances, but the LORD looks into the heart”. We all tend to look at things from an outward appearance. (How does the room look? Why are the clothes on the floor? Whose papers are these? ) But God goes deeper. Like Patty’s cleaning, God is more concerned about “deeper things”. What’s happening behind the appearance? What’s really at the core of what’s going on? God is interested in your heart.

I encourage you to allow God to do some deep, thorough cleaning. the deeper, the better. Let Him take a big bottle of spiritual Windex into your life, and watch the room of your heart shine!

Deep clean. Go make a difference. Always run by faith!

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Wrestling Isn’t Rigged

Perhaps you’ve heard the phrase, “Wrestling with God”. Well, let’s just say that I ‘got into the ring’ with the Lord the other day.

I pulled into my driveway, and saw my wife , and one of my sons, on their hands and knees in the grass. I knew something wasn’t right.

I asked, “Is everything ok?” “No, we can’t find the screw that we dropped.” You see, this screw was important in fixing my son’s car. And of course, this was a specialized screw. And, like I mentioned, they were fixing this in the grass.

They had been looking for 15 minutes, and couldn’t find the screw. So, we huddled up, took a moment and prayed. We keep looking. Kept praying. Kept wrestling!!

After several minutes, we found the screw! Now, this wasn’t moving mountains, or curing a disease, but it showed me the joy of praying, instead of being frantic.

Is there something you’ve been missing that needs to be found? I wonder what would happen if you simply stop, pray, and wrestle with God about finding it? Seek the joy of answered prayer.

Keep Wrestling. Go make a difference. Always run by faith.

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Goals and Purpose: A Winning Formula

Think back. 1 year ago. What was your goal for the year? Not your resolution, but your goal. How did you do?

At this point, you’re either smiling because you crushed it, or you want to exit out of this blog asap.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve trained for a race, only to fall short of my goal. Was it discouraging? Yes. Did I give up? NO!

I kept pushing, training, and making tweaks to better myself. Then, when the day came that I did hit my goal, oh, it was so much sweeter.

Goals are important steps in your everyday life. Maybe this is the year you take that first step in a faith walk with God. Pray daily. Read the Bible daily. Grab a daily devotional. For me, this has been my winning formula above all else.

So, you have a new slate. A new year. Stop looking back on the things you didn’t achieve, push toward a new goal, and go get it!

“I cry out to God Most High, to God who fulfills his purpose for me.”

Psalm 57:2

Set your goal. Go make a difference. Always run by faith.

4 Christmas Gifts

Merry Christmas! I hope your Christmas was wonderful.

I am going to keep this short. For the last few weeks, we have been preparing for the birth of Christ. Every week, we have focused on 4 great gifts of Jesus: Hope, Peace, Love, and Joy.

There is no wrapping paper for these gifts. There is no charge or layaway. These are gifts God gives to you through the birth of Christ.

Will you open these gifts and keep them? Or, will you return them and say, “No thanks.”

Unwrap the gifts. They fit perfectly! Go make a difference. Always run by faith.

Merry Christmas, friend! Subscribe for more encouragement.

Is A Wrong Turn Really Wrong?

Have you turned left when you meant to go, right? Straight when you were supposed to exit? Run on a trail instead of a road? Usually, you think “oops” or “that was a mistake,” but is it really?

I truly believe that God directs our steps. Many times, I’ve gone into a store when I wasn’t planning on it. Only to bump into a friend or someone I haven’t seen in forever. Is that a coincidence? I don’t believe it is.

I was just reading in Luke 2 in the Bible to prepare my heart for Christmas. I came across a verse that jumped off of the page. At first glance, it doesn’t seem like much. But, the more I read it, the more it caught my attention.

As they came to the temple to fulfill this requirement, an elderly man was there waiting—a resident of Jerusalem whose name was Simeon. He was a very good man, a lover of God who kept himself pure, and the Spirit of holiness rested upon him. Simeon believed in the imminent appearing of the one called “The Refreshing of Israel.” For the Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he saw the Messiah, the Anointed One of God. Keeping his promise, the Holy Spirit led Simeon to be in the temple court at the very moment Jesus’ parents entered to fulfill the requirement of the sacrifice.

Luke 2:25-27 TPT

I italicized the part that jumped off of the page.”The Holy Spirit led Simeon,”. At just the right time, Simeon was led into the temple to encounter Jesus. All of his life, he waited for this moment.

Was it a coincidence that Simeon walked into the temple at that time? Nope. This was a moment appointed by God. Simeon could’ve been anywhere, doing anything. But God made a way for Simeon to intersect with Jesus at just the right time.

Today, be on the lookout for those “moments” that God puts in your path. There may have been a reason you turned left when you planned on going right.

Be willing to be directed. Go make a difference. Always run by faith.

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It Happened In The Produce Aisle…

Over the weekend, my wife and I went grocery shopping. We were in the produce aisle, looking for lettuce. I accidentally bumped into the worker. “I’m so sorry,” I said. The worker said, “No problem”. Then I said, “Thanks for all that you do.” The worker gasped, turned around and looked at me saying, “thank you for saying that”. I was surprised that she turned around. I said, “I hope you hear that a lot.”  She laughed and said, “you’d be surprised”.

Wow! That’s all it took were those 6 simple words to change the perspective of her day? How much more can we share little nuggets of encouragement to change someone’s day?

Be an encourager. Go Make a Difference. Always Run by Faith!

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New Meaning To A Classic Christmas Song

“Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and everywhere. Go tell it on the mountain, that Jesus Christ is born!“

You’ve, more than likely, heard this Christmas song. But, it can kind of seem irrelevant. West Michigan has no mountains. West Michigan has very few hills. But, we can tell people that Jesus Christ is born!

So, to help bring this to today, and to our current landscape, let’s try this.

“Go tell it on Facebook.  Go tell it on Tik Tok. Go tell it on Instagram. Go tell it at the store. Go tell it on a Zoom call. Go tell it in the hallways. Running a trail and everywhere. Go tell it all over the place, that Jesus Christ is born!”

I hope this helps break down the significance of this song. Everywhere you go, spread some good news this Christmas!

Go tell it. Go make a difference. Always run by faith!

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