PRIZE OF THE IRONMAN – June 5

“More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” Romans 5:3-5

 “Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth.”
~ Mike Tyson, Mike Tyson explains one of his most famous quotes

Training has been done;
Miles have been logged;
Intervals accumulated;
Laps swum; and
Injuries avoided;

The sugar-plums of my dreams have been replaced by visions of the swim, bike, and run.

All that remains is to race.

The race for me is the Boise Ironman 70.3  that starts a mere 2 days from now. It would be a lie to pretend that I am not nervous. I have never raced this combination of distances. Therefore, the unknown of race day looms large in my mind.

I would like to have more time for a half-marathon run to be comfortable.
I would like to have done an open water swim this year.
I would like to have stacked a few more bricks.

Yet, all the things that I would like to have done, would not chase away the apprehension of race day unknowns I now feel. The challenge for a prepared racer is far less physical than it is mental. The body will perform how it has prepared. Muscles will pull and push to the levels they have been stretched. Lungs will exchange oxygen for carbon dioxide at their rate of capacity. Blood will carry all the essentials provided in order to accumulate miles at speed.  An athlete’s body will perform in accordance to the training plan it has developed under.

The mind is the unknown.

What happens when you enter the pain locker?

 What happens when the fun stops and adversity begins?

 What happens when you feel like you have been punched in the mouth?

That is the test of the mind.

We all have a plan.
We all have visions of success.

Yet, the mind determines whether those plans will be abandoned in the face of adversity.

I think this may be why I am drawn to endurance events. I want to train my mind not to give up under adversity. I want the confidence that I will continue when the plan really matters. My race on Saturday does not really matter. There are no consequences for not finishing. I have no hope of winning.  I won’t even be competitive.

The prize I seek from the Boise Ironman 70.3 is the realization that I can take a punch and still finish.

That is a prize that will reward throughout life. Life is full of adversity.

We will fail… be misunderstood… and ridiculed;

We will be disappointed… abandoned… and betrayed;

We will be attacked… face fear… and uncertainty;

We will make mistakes… experience loss…and know heartache;

We will be broken.

Any of these adversities can feel like a punch in the mouth. Suffering and trials can hit us so hard that we are willing to abandon our plan, even our first love, to gain relief. How can you be confident that you will endure all things when it really matters?

This is the prize of suffering.

It is why I will rejoice in the pain that comes from the Boise Ironman 70.3.

It is why I rejoice in all the suffering that I have endured.

I rejoice because I have learned that I can take a punch and won’t give up. Throughout my life, I believe that the Spirit of God has used those punches to produce in me a character of endurance. It is a character, grounded in faith, which gives me a confidence based in experience. It is that character that produces hope. I rejoice in that hope. It is this hope that will never put me to shame because God’s love has been poured into my heart through the Holy Spirit who has been given to me.

What about you?

Can you take a punch in the mouth?
Are you confident in your character?
What has your character produced?

I realize that endurance events are not for everyone. However, there are plenty of opportunities in life to train our minds not to give up. It is why sticking with the small things matter. They are all opportunities to train our mind – and that is a prize worth enduring for.

My hope for you is:

When it gets hard, you go deep;
When it hurts, you look beyond;
When it is inconvenient, you continue;
When others run away, you stand;
When you want to give you, you take another step.

My hope for you is that you will rejoice in all the adversities of your life…because they will produce hope.

That hope is a prize worth training for.

PRAYER: Father, thank you for what you have taught me in suffering.  While I do not desire adversity, you have shown me the value it produces.  Thank you for the character that you have developed in me.  Thank you for the hope that will never disappoint.  Lord, train me in those areas were I am prone to give up.  Build within me a mental toughness to take a punch when it really matters and to continue to follow you. I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

RACE MODE – April 25

“You were running well.  Who hindered you from obeying the truth?”  Galatians 5:7

I have six weeks to go until the Ironman Boise 70.3. Time has slipped past quicker on the calendar than the asphalt has passed beneath me since my decision to enter (The Agnostic will never be an Ironman). My training has been very consistent yet my time-on-legs has not accumulated as rapidly as I would have liked.

Two rules of thumbs have come to press me into an uncomfortable dilemma. I need to add running miles slowly to avoid injury. Yet, I need to begin tapering from my longest run, three weeks before race day so I will be fresh when it really matters. I have been adding one mile per week. If I get in a 10 mile run this weekend, then I can get to 13 miles over the next three weeks, just in time before I need to start backing off.

It will all work out as long as I stay on schedule.

However, the weather has not been cooperating with my schedule. This last week has been full of rain and wind that has completely kept me off the bike and has forced me to limit my runs. I look to the forecast of the weekend without much hope of a break in the weather.  I need to get in a long run, but that will probably mean a miserable run in a cold, driving, rain.

My race day looms through the gloom of storms. The storm front will not push my race day back.  I will either have to endure through uncomfortable training conditions or face the disappointment of not being ready on race day.

If a race did not occupy a spot on my calendar, I would not train in inclement weather. I would not go out in miserable conditions when they could be avoided by delay. I would not strive to improve at the expense of unnecessary discomfort.  There is no need to endure the uncomfortable when there is plenty of time to train or there is no race on the horizon.

We train differently when we are in race mode. We have to demonstrate more self-control in our training when we are striving to do well in a race. Therefore, I will be going for a run this weekend. I hope it does not rain but I am resolved not to let the weather detour me from my goal.

The same is true of our spiritual training. We live differently when we are in race mode.

Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it. Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air. But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified. (1 Corinthians 9:24-27)

We all have a day coming when we cross the finish line of life. Will we finish well? Are we striving to obtain the prize? The storm clouds of life will not push back our final day. That glorious day should loom through all the momentary gloom of daily cares.

Yet, I do not see a lot of folks living in race mode. The self-control of spiritual disciplines is quickly discarded at the hint of inclement conditions.

Evening prayers are shortened to accommodate late-night TV.
Comfort is sought in ice cream rather than our Savior.
Praise of men governs a prideful tongue.
Charity is withheld in lieu of vacation.
Ministry is replaced by a nap.
Envy flourishes in the discontentment of loss.
Worship of flesh replaces praise of the Almighty.
Harsh words are not withheld due to unrestrained anxiety.
Morning bible reading is discarded for minutes of additional sleep.

It is easy for the cares of this world to throw us off our game. Self-control is difficult when the pressure and discomfort of a sinful will wars against our redeemed soul. It is easy to surrender to our sinful passions when we are living as if there is no finish line and cease to strive for the prize.

We do not live aimlessly. Our self-control is not in vain. We are following Christ in order to obtain the prize of eternal life. We are striving in our spiritual training to glorify the God we love and to enjoy Him daily. We say  “no” to our flesh because we are in a race for the glory of God and we only have so many days to the finish line.

Let’s not waste a day of training.  May we continue to follow Christ even when the world around us is miserable and we just want to stay in bed.  The finish line is coming and none of us knows the day.  What is hindering you from running well?

I think this video by John Piper, Make War, is excellent at describing the attitude we Christians should live in.

PRAYER: Father, keep me in race mode. Lord, help me to make war on my sinful flesh.  Don’t let me be live like there will always be another day to glorify you.  Help me to number my days.  Give me the strength to follow you in the foulest of circumstances.  Give me the perseverance to always strive forward in obedience regardless of what my flesh wants to do.   I pray this in the precious name of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen

“2014 Resolutions” – Dec 29

“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.  Pursue love, and earnestly desire the spiritual gifts, especially that you may prophesy.”  1 Corinthians 13:13-14:1

A year is an effective measurement of time.  It is long enough to accomplish difficult tasks and make marked improvements.  Yet, it is short enough that you can actually remember its beginning.  This makes a year the perfect period of time for resolution making.

Goal setting has become a necessity for me.  I am not a free-spirit.  I can’t afford to be a free-spirit.  I am not naturally talented; I have never been the bright student; nor have people whispered of my gifts while watching me.  Very few things, other than lethargy, have ever come easy for me.

I am a grinder.  I have been blessed with some tenacity.  I have learned that I can accomplish most goals once I incorporate that objective into my routine.  However, no goal will ever be accomplished if you don’t have a reasonable and rational strategy to achieve it.  I have found that if you have enough time, a goal is achievable, and you have a good strategy, then you can usually accomplish it if you are willing to grind away.  This video sums up my approach to the difficult things I hope to accomplish.

Welcome to the Grind

Here are my goals and strategies for 2014:

 BOOKS
(I did not read the books that I had hoped to read this last year.  There are few things more edifying to me than reading so I want to be intentional about making time to read.)

Bible

Pilgrim’s Progress – John Bunyan
Extravagant Grace – Barbara Duguid
Religious Affections – Jonathan Edwards
Think – John Piper
Mere Christianity – C.S. Lewis
Hole in our Holiness – Kevin DeYoung
The Cross of Christ – John Stott
Business for the Glory of God – Wayne Grudem
Institutes of the Christian Religion, Book 1 – John Calvin
No Argument for God – John Wilkinson
(My goal is to read the works of one dead author for every live one.)

The Greater Journey – David McCullough
Flags of Our Fathers – James Bradley
Jean Jacques Rousseau – Leo Damrosch

Robert Frost – Selected Poems

The Last of the Mohicans – James Fenimore Cooper
The Nutmeg of Consolation – Patrick O’Brian
Renegade – Ted Dekker
Ender’s Game – Orson Scott Card

Strategy:
Read my Bible every day – stay on my reading plan; all other reading will be suspended until I am caught up.
Make book time greater than TV time.
Read some portion of a book daily.
Read a poem every other day.

MEMORIZATION
(I wanted to memorize Romans 8 last year; I blogged about in “Will You Train with Me”.   I struggled when I got up to 23 verses and then gave up.  So, I want to give it another run this year.)

Goal – Memorize all of Romans 8

Memorization Strategy:
Recite the passage on the way to work.
Recite the passage on the way home from work.
Use ScriptureTyper.  (Kindly recommended by Shawn Martin at Shawn’s Journal )

SPIRITUAL DISCIPLINE
(I feel like the most lacking area of my spiritual life is prayer.  Therefore, I want to take a year and focus on communing with God.  I want prayer to constant and as natural as breathing.)

Goal – Be a man of prayer.

Spiritual Discipline Strategy:
Set aside time every day for a minimum of 15 minutes in prayer.
Have my prayer journal by my bedside.
Ask for prayer requests from my family.
Intentionally slow my decision making to allow for prayer.

WRITING
(Writing has become a blessing beyond my expectation.  I am humbled that after a door of ministry as a pastor was closed that an avenue in blogging would open.  I am so very thankful to all who have shown the kindness to read my writing.)

Blog
Write 325 blog posts (currently at 420 posts);
Increase to 3,000 followers (currently at 2,127)

Book
I would like to write a book… but not ready to make that a goal.  I keep it as a dream for now.

Writing Strategy:
Write concisely; keep blog posts between 800-900.
Write a devotional blog every two days.
Respond within three days to comments.
Read WordPress blogs daily.
Follow the advice of C.S. Lewis:  “In writing. Don’t use adjectives which merely tell us how you want us to feel about the thing you are describing. I mean, instead of telling us a thing was “terrible,” describe it so that we’ll be terrified. Don’t say it was “delightful”; make us say “delightful” when we’ve read the description. You see, all those words (horrifying, wonderful, hideous, exquisite) are only like saying to your readers, “Please will you do my job for me.””  C.S. Lewis’ Letters to Children

WEIGHT
(I really don’t want to pack 14 extra pounds around the Boise Ironman course or up the second summit of the 4 Summit Challenge.)

Goal – 186 lbs by June; currently 200 lbs

Weight Strategy:
Ordered P90X3
Continue triathlon training
Eat less than 2,000 calories a day; loaded app to track food consumption.

 ATHLETIC

Tour of Ontario Cycling – March
2014 Time Trial Goal – Age group top 10
2014 Road Race Goal – Age group top 20

Camel’s Back Duathlon (Long Course: 5K- 30K-5K) – May
2014 Goal – 1 hours 50 minutes; Age group top 3

Ironman 70.3 Boise – June 7
2014 Goal:  5 hours 30 minutes; Age group top 20

Spudman Triathlon Boise (Olympic) – July
2013 Finish – 2 hours 51 minutes 37 seconds
2014 Goal – 2 hours 45 minutes; Age group top 3

4 Summit Challenge – July 26
2014 Goal – 6 mph up second summit

Emmett’s Most Excellent Triathlon (Olympic)– August 9
2013 Finish – 2 hours 42 minutes 10 seconds
2014 Goal – 2 hours 35 minutes; Age group podium

Pedal for Patients (Century Ride) – August 23
2014 Goal – 20 mph average

Ontario Aquatic Triathlon (Sprint) – September
2013 Finish – 1 hour 7 minutes 3 seconds
2014 Goal – 59 minutes 59 seconds

Run for the Hills Half Marathon – October
Goal – 1 hour 58 minutes; Age group top 15

Athletic Strategy:
Follow training plan at 18 Week Half Ironman
Ride once a week with local cycling club.
Run once a week with Meet Me on Monday club.

The above list is what I came up with for 2014 and then I read Jon Bloom’s excellent blog on Desiring God entitled Your Most Courageous Resolution for 2014 .  I felt his challenge to “make 2014 a year where we pursue love with more intentionality than we ever have before”.  I looked at the above list of goals and strategies and realized that it was lacking a key category.

I have goals and strategies that I believe with help me pursue a love of God with intentionality.  However, I did not have goals or strategies to help me pursue a love of my neighbor.  I know how important loving my neighbor is.  Jon Bloom helped me to remember that I need to be intentional about the second greatest commandment.

I considered many possible goals to help me pursue a love for my neighbor.  In all honesty, I do not want to do any of them.  Most of the goals that come to mind also turn my stomach.  The above list of goals and strategies are all things I want to do.  In fact, I have already started in on all of them because I find enjoyment in every category.  Many of the goals in the “love your neighbor” category, represent sheer obligation.

I found myself questioning my obedience and asking God to change my personality.  I then remembered something that I had written… it is always odd when a past post  preaches to the present you.  I was reminded that I am who God created.  Allow me to introduce myself once again, “Hello my name is JD and I’m an introvert.”

God loves a cheerful giver.  That means that we need to be obedient to God’s commandments with a joyful heart and not out of sheer obligation.  I can grind out in obedience the actions of love for my neighbor but that will not be a pleasant smelling offering – to my neighbor or God.

God could change me into an extrovert but until then I am going to follow a reasonable and rational strategy to pursue a love for my neighbor that glorifies God.

LOVE MY NEIGHBOR

Goal – That those who are in my life will experience the love of God.

Love Strategy:
Write; share with others what God has shown me in His word.
Encourage; write at least one note of encouragement per week.
Start a home Bible Study in January – actually invite people to it.

I conclude this list with advice from Julie Gillies in her blog How to Pray When You’re Setting Goals.  (Thanks to Julie Garro for posting the link on her Follow the Light blog)

“…goals that aren’t infused with and a result of prayer can lead to unnecessary frustration and disappointment…
My goals must = God’s goals.”

PRAYER: O Lord, not my will but your will be done.  Father, examine and transform my thoughts so that they align with your thoughts, make my desires to be your desires and cause my goals to come from a heart eager to do your will.  Make the goals that are pleasing to you succeed and remove that which does not glorify your name.  Give me wisdom to recognize the plans that I need to relinquish and those I need to change.  I pray for this coming year that your name will be hallowed; that your kingdom will come and your will be done; I pray that you will provide for all my needs.  Father, help me to forgive and keep me from temptation.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.

NOTE:  Sorry for the length of this post. I realize that I am not off to a good start with my strategy of shorter posts:)

“COST OF AN IRONMAN” – Nov 2

“For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?”  Luke 14:28

My personal triathlon journey started with the goal to just finish one.  I am two years and about $2,500 into this journey, after buying a road bike, a tri-bike, a membership at the City Pool, all the associated paraphernalia, and registration fees.  When I started this journey, I was not completely aware of the cost.  That ignorance was mostly due to my failure to do the accounting.  However, I believe I might have discovered my cost limit regarding the sport of triathlon.

I have flirted with the idea of stepping up to the next triathlon distance for my third year.  The next distance is the half-ironman or the 70.3.  I am apprehensive but not about combining the 1.2 miles (1.9 km) swim and the 56 miles (90 km) bike.  My concern dwells with the half-marathon run, 13.1 miles (21.1 km), at the end of those disciplines.

I have vacillated over that run.  I have made plans to do the race and then reconsider.  I read some more,  work out some more and I reconsider my reconsideration.  I have hemmed and hawed for about two months.

Additional motivation has come through reading blogs and watching videos of the recent World Championships in Kona, Hawaii.  I am enamored with the idea of being able to say that I am an Ironman; at least a 70.3 Ironman.  I think it would be cool to put the M-dot logo of Ironman on my pick-up even if it is qualified by the 70.3 distinction.

So, I decided to do it and I told a bunch of people that I was all-in. The Boise Ironman 70.3 is the event I have chosen as my inauguration into the half-ironman world.

However, their registration website surprised me.  The registration fee is $250. Registration fees that are less than $100 are what I have become accustomed  – $250 might just be too much.  I don’t know if it is worth it.  I have set off on this Boise Ironman goal without knowing all the costs.

I don’t know if I am willing to pay the price to become an Ironman.

Jesus taught that true discipleship must include planning.  A follower of Christ must be sure that they are willing to pay the full price of discipleship.  We are encouraged to consider the cost of the sacrifices we are willing to incur as a disciple of Christ.

Jesus calls us to give up everything.

If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.  Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.  (Luke 14:26-27)

The only way I know how to count the costs of following Christ is to meditate on thought experiments:

Would I renounce Christ for the life of my wife?
Would I renounce Christ to stop the torture of my son or daughter?

Some followers of Christ have had to make that decision.

Would I keep my faith silent to keep my freedom?
Would I keep my faith silent to keep my wealth?

Some followers of Christ have had to make that decision.

Would I deny my convictions for friendship?
Would I deny my convictions for peace?

Some followers of Christ have had to make that decision.

Would I give up my life for the sake of the cross?

I don’t know what my reaction to these scenarios would be if I were to actually have to face them.  However, I know how I hope that I will react.  I hope that I am willing to pay all the potential costs for Christ.  I know what Jesus wants from me – everything.  That does not mean he will take it but it means that I treasure Him more than anything else.

The true disciple loves Christ more than all His blessings.

Whoever loves father and mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.  And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.  Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. (Matthew 10:37-39)

If I vacillate over the costs of discipleship in a mental exercise, there is a problem.  If I am not willing to pay the price in a thought experiment, then I will probably not be willing to pay the price on the day of the actual test.  We must be planners for the potential costs of our faith.  If we are not willing to pay the price for the strong tower then it probably won’t be there in our time of need.

If you are not willing to pay the costs, then you might not be a disciple after all.

Casper Ten Boom (Photo credit: Corrie ten Boom Museum)

When I consider these scenarios, I doubt my strength to withstand the test.  I know that I am weak.  I know that my strength will not withstand any of thought experiment scenarios within my strength.  The hope of my response does not rest in my strength.  My hope rests in the strength of God.  I have assurance that I will be willing to pay the cost of a true disciple on the day of trial because my Father will give me the strength when I need it.  Corrie ten Boom’s father, Casper ten Boom, expressed this truth beautifully:

And our wise Father in heaven knows when we’re going to need things, too. Don’t run out ahead of Him, Corrie. When the time comes that some of us will have to die, you will look into your heart and find the strength you need-just in time.  (Corrie ten Boom, The Hiding Place)

I may not be willing to pay the price of being an Ironman, but I do know that I am willing to pay the price of a true Disciple of Christ because my Father, who knows what I need, will give me the strength . . .  just in time.

PRAYER: Lord, you know the doubt that plagues me when I contemplate trials.  You know the uncertainty when I wonder how I would react to the same persecutions that my brothers and sisters in Christ have endured.  Father, I trust you.  You know my heart better than I do.  You know that I love you.  Prepare me to walk down any path that you give me.  I will trust you to provide the strength that I need – just in time.  I pray this in the precious name of your Son,  Jesus Christ.   Amen.