Running again.

I never intended to stay away from this space as long as I did in January. And I never intended to run as little as I did in January. But one thing after another, the days without firm purpose or intention drifted away from me. I know better than to be without intention.

I need to run.

I need to start the day with firm purpose.

I'm back. Back on the treadmill on days that are too cold or too icy or too dark. Back at the keyboard even though it seems like there might be a million more pressing things to do. Back at it, but with some reinforcement this time. All the running books and blogs and magazines say that a running buddy is a major key to success.

I usually run alone.

My friend Jen joined my gym. She's an accomplished runner. I've always wanted to run with her and always known we'd be sorely mismatched. But now? We could definitely run on side-by-side treadmills, each at our own pace. And my husband? The one whose stride is twice mine and who held track records in his youth? He won't even touch the treadmill now, but he can make that elliptical do some crazy things. Right next to me. 

And, {well, I'm whispering now}, but I promised my friend Nicole I'd run a half-marathon with her in the fall and she promised back. So, we're both going to have to get over our "I only run alone" thing sometime this year.

Yes, indeed, 2015 is the year I'll run with friends. 

A few years ago, one of my best friends in the world moved away. Before she left for the jungles of Costa Rica, we talked every day, sometimes two or three times a day. We planned school things together. We shared some of life's most unimaginably difficult moments with each other. We held each other up and walked, dragged, pushed, and pulled each other along a faith journey. 

Then she left. And we have found that telephones--once our greatest connector--are our biggest obstacles. The easy connectedness is nothing but easy. But we know we need each other. We need the dailiness. We need to have mission together.

We need to be running buddies.

Colleen is going to join me here. We're going for a morning run together. Every day. We hope you come along. We'll share what is inspiring us and we'll share our prayers and firm intentions. (By the way, as far as I know, Colleen doesn't run in real life; you know, like with her feet. You can be sure I intend to work on that;-)

THINK 

And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. --1 Peter 5:10

PRAY

Lord, help me to remember that in the suffering, I am refined. I need to cling to you in those times, to be faithful and to know that you are there and that you have a purpose and a that the purpose is to draw me closer to You. Bring me that point where  you will restore and strengthen me. Let me know that that is where we're going. Together. 

ACT

Did January get away from you? Did all your resolve kind of melt away as you recovered from the holidays and tried to get ahead of the business-as-usual January? Me, too. Can we call this beginning of February a new beginning and put to paper five things which will strengthen us? Just five things that we can resolve to do to better equip us to journey in faith. Make a real list. 

Go!