Today's Running Partner

Favorite Running Partner Ever

Lessons from This Morning's Run

This morning’s run started in a driveway. Not the normal driveway. A driveway in the heart of Mark Twain National Forest nestled in the Ozark mountains. Highway DD in southern Missouri is one of my favorite places to run.

Solitude

The best thinking has been done in solitude. The worst has been done in turmoil. -Thomas A. Edison 

No headphones allowed on this run. The tight, curvy, and hilly highway isn’t well travelled, but the runner has to hear the traffic. Just as well. The sounds of the birds and the animals are delightful. The sounds of silence even more. I dreamt, prayed, and thought about how to be a better me. Kierkegaard wrote: “A great man is one that can develop convictions in solitude and carry them out in a crowd.” I’m at least part of the way there. 

Suffering

Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars. –Kahlil Gibran 

The hills on this road are relentless. Steep and long. The first climb lasts the better part of two miles. My intentions were to get up at 6:00. Yesterday’s eight hours of driving between Branson and Little Rock with ninety minutes of speaking sandwiched between wore me out. I woke up at 8:30. By the time I started at 9:30 the temperature was well in the 80s. The sun was as oppressive as the inclines and declines. I was suffering the entire run—save the first few minutes near the lakeshore. My suffering was optional. The cancer patient, the person who has had a relationship end, and those who battle depression—their suffering isn’t optional. One of the coolest things in life is seeing people emerge from devastation and suffering as recovering and stronger. God does such things every day. 

Sanctity

Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You. -Dr. Seuss 

About eight miles into the run I knew my breath would be taken away. Not by a view of the lake or a deer. By a makeshift gravesite. I’ve seen it many times. He was only seventeen. Way too young. Dreams disappeared that night. Death makes us think about life. Even though I knew it was coming, I became a little more grateful for mine. 

Solidarity

Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: "What! You too? I thought I was the only one.” –C.S. Lewis 

The hills and the heat were winning. At nine miles I saw an oasis. A sprinkler. The woman was gardening. I asked her if she minded if I borrowed her sprinkler. She not only said yes, she took my two empty waters bottles inside and filled them up. We shared a laugh or two as I drank the water. The last mile was downhill. My body was defeated. My mind and soul were refreshed.

The best is yet to come… 

Craig

WEtv - Running For Kids in Africa

Ten thousand runners ran the Lincoln Marathon and Half Marathon on May 1st. Sixty-three of those runners were on the Running For Kids in Africa team. Most of the sixty-three had never run a race before. Sixty-three finished their race.

The group had four goals when it started in November. 

1. To raise money to support kids in Africa.
2. To embrace a healthier lifestyle.
3. To forge existing friendships and to create new friendships.
4. To help people achieve a dream.

Watch five stories of how God changed lives through this ministry.

If you are interested in joining us for our fall marathon, half marathon, or 10K - visit our web site: www.runningforkidsinafrica.com.

The Marathon

Running for Kids in Africa. We were an eclectic group of runners.

Some of the team before the race

One of the runners had lung cancer a few years ago. Post-operation, he never dreamed one day he would be running a half-marathon. Another of the runners is the fastest Nebraskan ever at 10,000 meters. He’s not as fast as he was twenty years ago when he won a national title at Wesleyan, but his love for the sport and for people is contagious. One marathoner smoked two packs of cigarettes per day in December. These five months have changed his life and maybe saved his life. One woman has run the Boston Marathon five times. Forty-five runners had never run a race before. One of our runners placed in the top ten in the marathon. The other sixty-two didn’t. 

Sixty-three of our runners started the Lincoln Marathon or Half-Marathon. Sixty-three finished. The hours and hours of training during the cold, icy weather paid off. The miles and miles of sweating on the treadmill are now worth it. I was proud to wear my bright orange shirt yesterday. I knew the people wearing the same shirt in front of me and those behind me had given and were giving their best. 

One of our runners, Bill Draper, was not able to run the marathon because he suffered a severe brain injury about three weeks ago. Thirty-six hours before our race we ran Bill’s race for him. One hundred and seventy five people: runners, children, friends, family, and supportive strangers from the church showed up and ran or walked a lap in Bill’s honor. It was a beautiful thing seeing the church be the church. I drove to Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital after the marathon and gave Bill my finisher’s medal. The medal is his now as he takes the beginning steps to his marathon of recovering. 

I have run in the Drake Relays against Olympians in front of 20,000 fans. I’ve run the Boston Marathon with 25,000 other runners. As I look back, this was my most rewarding experience as a runner. We raised over $26,000 for kids in Africa. If nothing else happened that would have been more than enough. Kids will get fresh water, nutritious food, education, medicine, and hope. 

But something else did happen. Friendships were forged. Strangers become supporters. Husbands and wives trained together. Dads ran with their daughters. God gives us each other and we all now understand that better. 

People embraced a happier lifestyle. Collectively, the runners lost hundreds of pounds. Hearts and lungs various other muscles have become stronger. 

But the thing I loved the most was seeing the fearful be transformed into a finisher. Running a half-marathon or marathon seems like a daunting task. And it is. Six months ago, many didn’t know if they could do something like this and were fearful. Yesterday, the runners did this and were finishers. Through Christ, more is possible in life that what we believe. 

Amanda doing her first half marathon

Four typically skinny distance runners

Allison on her way to breaking two hours!

Jamie and April - Training Partners and Friends

Jessica finishing her first marathon!

Michelle and Emily - Mother and Daughter - Finishers

The Nech's before the race

I think those hands are always attached to the hips

Rick Perez running down the Hauptmans

Ray and his girls. They ran great! After Ray paced them, he went 
out and paced a marathon runner. Over 30 miles for the day!

Jessica and Stacey celebrating post-race

The Vances and the Clements

Running for His Life

Jason Phipps is running for his life. Literally. He started smoking at age nine. In mid-December, he decided he needed to quit smoking. A few days later, he made another decision: to join up with Running For Kids in Africa and run a marathon. Could he make two drastic changes in less than six months?

Without making any changes, Jason saw his future filled with physical dysfunction and illness. He also dreamed of a new life. A healthier life.

Jason is no longer a smoker. On Sunday he will become a marathoner. 

Jason talks about his first steps. He shared about his biggest challenges and biggest rewards. And he reflects on where God fits in this story.

Running for Kids in Africa

Here is a story that run in the Nebraska Messenger about our Running for Kids in Africa ministry. When the story was written, we had raised $15,000 of our $20,000 goal. Yesterday we reached our goal and now have over $21,000 going to kids in Africa. Over 60 runners, many of them first-timers, will be running the Lincoln Marathon and Half Marathon on May 1st. One runner on the team ran the Olathe Marathon last Saturday and three runners ran the Boston Marathon yesterday.

The Rev. Craig Finnestad is an experienced runner, having competed in numerous marathons over the years. He’s seen many of his friends run to raise money for various causes, and one day last year he had an epiphany of sorts.

“I thought, ‘I want to do that, but I want to do it through church,’” he said. “I’ve always had a heart for Africa and its people.”

That is how Running For Kids in Africa came to the Water’s Edge, the United Methodist Church Finnestad serves in Omaha. Though the congregation has many runners amongst its members, Finnestad still wasn’t sure what to expect one Sunday last fall when he presented the idea to form a team to run either the 2011 Lincoln full or half marathon, all in the name of raising money for kids in Africa.

“I was thinking we may have a couple of dozen runners sign up,” said Finnestad. “We ended up having almost 80 say they were on board; that totally exceeded all of my expectations.”

Almost 80 percent of those who are participating have never before run a half marathon (13.1 miles) or marathon (26.2 miles). Most of them are doing the half; Finnestad is among those who will be running the full.

They’re doing their fundraising through Team World Vision, a program of World Vision that enables athletes to raise awareness and funds for communities in need through their athletic events. The program provides each runner with a fundraising page; some runners have raised more than $1,000. The race is May 1; the team has currently raised nearly $15,000 of their $20,000 goal.

“I believe we’re going to meet our goal,” said Finnestad, “I’m very optimistic.”

There will be an opportunity at the Water’s Edge in April for non-participants to donate or sponsor a runner and/or child in Africa.

While raising money for and awareness of hurting kids in Africa is the primary reason for running, Finnestad had additional goals for wanting to implement a running ministry, including to encourage healthy lifestyles, build friendships and help people accomplish a dream. He says it’s worked on all counts.

“The participants have lost hundreds of pounds (combined), are getting to know each other and are chasing down a dream,” he commented.

Husband and wife Justin and Jennie Clements will both be running their first half marathons.

“We went to Lincoln last year to watch the marathon and were inspired to do a half-marathon someday,” Jennie said, “Little did we know that our ‘someday’ would be sooner than later.”

She continued, “When Pastor Craig presented the idea at church about starting a running group, we were ecstatic and jumped on board right away. It’s an added bonus that we get to do this with people from church and raise money for children in Africa in the process!”

The team gathers every Saturday at Lake Zorinsky in Omaha to go on a long run. Team World Vision offers a training schedule for both the half and full marathon. Finnestad also assembled a team of mentors and experts, including a dietician and physical therapist, to help the runners meet their goals.

Renee Eardensohn is one of the participants serving as a mentor to some of the first-time half-marathon runners.

“I was so excited to be asked to be a mentor, because I’ve had people serve as one for me over the years, and I know how much it helped” Eardensohn said. “It’s so fun to see them accomplish their goals and inspiring to see their excitement when they run farther than they ever thought they could.”

While Eardensohn has run many races over the years — this year’s Lincoln Marathon will be her 20th race of that distance — she said running for a cause definitely feels different than just running a “normal” race.

“Running for those kids in Africa gives it a meaning and a purpose beyond just yourself,” she said. “You’re not running for the fun or accomplishment of it, and it’s not just about crossing the finish line, you think about those kids while you’re running, and it strengthens you to know that somebody’s going to benefit.”

Or as it states on the team’s website, “We aren’t running for medals. We are running for hope.”

To find out how you can start a team through World Vision, visit the Team World Vision website, www.teamworldvision.org. For more information on Team World Vision at the Water’s Edge, or to make a donation, visit www.runningforkidsinafrica.com.

A New Creation

Here is this week's edition of WEtv.

Our guest is Carl Samuelson. Carl shared about the incredible journey he has been on over the last few years.

Carl’s story starts passed out in car with a drinking problem. It continues being 100 pounds overweight. The path he was on was toward destruction and possibly death. 

μετάνοια - metanoia - repent - to turn 180 degrees

Carl hasn’t had a drink in years. In a few weeks Carl will be running the Lincoln Marathon. The path he is on is toward hope and life.

Carl shares his own thoughts about sobriety, weight loss, parenting, and life change.

WEtv - Interview with Derek Fey

Derek Fey, author of the book, We Were Born to Run, is the guest on WEtv this week.

A Little Bit About A Lot of Things

Snow days. I like snow. Especially when it is falling. The bigger the flakes the better. Peaceful snow that falls from a warmer, calmer sky is much better than a bitter, cold, and windy snow. I even like snow days. It’s fun to have an unexpected day off. The work has to be made up sometime, but I have my entire adult life to work. The kids are only young once. But, snow two or three days later is not so good. It gets crusty and dirty. Especially on the side of the roads.


The best news is that spring will arrive soon. The tulips and daffodils will emerge from snow. The grass will show hints of green. The days will keep getting longer. And the sun will be warm. Spring will replace winter. Even better news is that new life can happen in us as well. Expectation and hope will emerge from pain. Hurts will show hints of healing. The days of anxiety and depression will grow shorter. Our hearts will be warmer. Resurrection will replace death.

Running for Kids in Africa. 100 people will be running the Lincoln Marathon and Half Marathon on Sunday, May 1st. We have raised over $5,000 so far for hungry and hurting kids in Africa. Our goal is $20,000. To support kids in Africa through runners in our church, visit our team web site: www.runningforkidsinafrica.com.

Coming Soon. Today we are finishing our sermon series, Boiling Point. We have DVDs and CDs of previous messages that you can watch or listen to. I also encourage you to use them as a tool to invite others to worship with us. Next week we start a new series, Enough. This will be a series about wisdom and finances; thinking biblically about money; contentment, joy, generosity; and resourcing God’s vision.

Worship Participation. Our average number of participants per Sunday in January was 413. The average in 2010 was 348 per Sunday. Our average number of children per week in January was 87 compared to 67 per week in January 2010. Those are increases of 19% and 30%. Obviously we have many new people of all ages. If you are new, we would enjoy getting to know you! I hope you will join one of our serving teams or try one of our small groups. Contact jill@watersedgeomaha.com for more information. If you have been around awhile, I hope you will take some time to get to know somebody you are unfamiliar with.

Bible Reading Plan. Our newest Bible reading plan starts tomorrow (Monday, February 7th) as we continue to read through the New Testament. It is a one-week bridge before we start our next series. We will be reading 1 John, 2 John, and 3 John. If you haven’t tried this before, commit to doing the readings (about 5 to 10 minutes per day) for the next seven days. If you need a New Testament, pick one up in the connections area. We have been hearing many great stories about how God is changing lives through this ministry.

The best is yet to come…

Craig