TFL | The Sacrifice of Running With A Partner
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Speaker 2:Hi. My name is Gabriel Coyle, and this is my blog entitled The Sacrifice of Running with a Partner. Easy now. One false step, and it's over 50 feet straight down. Running 55 kilometers in desert sand, bouldering cliffs with no railings, inches from death, This is what I do for fun.
Speaker 2:Ultra marathons are a weird mix of personal growth, pain, beauty, accomplishment, and pain. When the Hebrews wrote scripture, they would double a word to heighten its intensity. That seems to fit here. And for this particular run at Horseshoe Bend, I was running with my best friend, Thomas. This wasn't our first ultra together years before we ran a 100 mile race to honor his older brother who passed away.
Speaker 2:Now we ran for the sheer opportunity to be together in pain. After we finished the race and we're emptying our shoes of sand, Thomas asked, was it easier to run together or alone? I said, that's easy. Alone. I was tired, so I was a bit blunt.
Speaker 2:I continued, when you run alone, you zone out and you get in your pace, you can serve your energy and are only paying attention to your own body. No conversation, no distractions, no slowing down because someone else needs a breather, just the finish line in front of you. When you run with someone, there are extra variables. You make sacrifices. You wait for each other.
Speaker 2:You try to sync up. You talk when you should breathe. Hearing that your partner is tired can cause you to pay attention to your own tiredness. Seeing the look of desperation in their eyes burdens your soul. I could go on.
Speaker 2:So then why drive halfway across the country to run a stupid long race with someone when you sacrifice so much of your potential in the race? Because there are better things in life than winning a piece of metal. By the way, I love this about ultra races. Usually, the trophy is kind of absurd. For 1 ultra, I literally won a rock that was painted.
Speaker 2:Why? Because it's never about the trophy. Not really. When Thomas and I were running on the edge of Horseshoe Bend going uphill in ankle deep sand or bouldering cliffs looking for little pink flags that signal the trail. We were also talking through the years that God had worked in our lives.
Speaker 2:We cried, laughed, prayed, and dreamed while we ran. When we finally crossed the finish line, we did it together. This is why I didn't finish my response to Thomas only explaining why it was easier to run alone. I didn't end with the sacrifices necessary for having a running partner. Rather, after talking and taking a couple of needed swigs of water, I said, but running with someone is better when they're friends.
Speaker 2:What we got is better than what the guys sitting alone who came in ahead of us got. We got us. We are why we are here, and I wouldn't trade that for jewelry. There's an old African proverb that captures this sentiment. If you wanna go fast, go alone.
Speaker 2:If you wanna go far, go together. The same could be said for the Christian life. It's so fascinating that God's plan a has never been for Christians to run this life solo, but to belong to a church community that runs the good race well together. Yes. This will require sacrifice.
Speaker 2:It's okay to be honest that it's hard sometimes, but this is where the real prize resides, and we can't miss that either. The church and deep Christian friendships are where relational joy and trust are cultivated that bleed over into every aspect of life. This in many ways is the good life, abundant life, life with God, and that makes all the sacrifices we make to keep running with others worth it. Not painless, but worth your while. And besides, in the end, it won't matter what place you finished.
Speaker 2:In some sense, it's not even about the trophy. That was always a metaphor in scripture. What will matter is whether or not you're running with others at all. Yes. It's important to be running with Jesus, but Jesus never runs with just one person.
Speaker 2:There's always at least 2. That's what's central to finishing well. So put on those shoes and go for a run with someone. Start to let the stride of your life sync up with another follower of Jesus. And while it may make life harder at first, you'll be amazed to what God gives on your journey.
Speaker 1:Theform.life, inspiring daily habits of whole life discipleship that equip you to more thoughtfully and consistently be formed by God's word and God's ways with God's people every day. This resource is brought to you by Christ Community Church in Kansas City.
