Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12:2
Yes, it's been a while ... even though the Bank of America Chicago Marathon will be my eighth, I've never trained for a fall marathon. While I've done fall half marathons, the training is not as intense, and I can usually let the heat of summer pass before really cranking up the miles. And while I knew what to expect training-wise in preparing for Chicago ... well, knowing what to expect and actually experiencing it are two different things. Training through the heat in the Inland Empire, even though I run in the early morning on weekends or evenings after work, is still pretty hot. It may not be smoggy Beijing hot, but IE smoggy hot isn't exactly training in an air conditioned gym. Add to that the occasional monsoonal humidity, it can be really draining.
So I'd get home, shower, stretch, eat then sit in front of the computer to write ... and ... nothing ... a couple times I dozed off, which is kind of unusual for me, because other times of the year, I'm a little amped up from the workout and it takes me a while to wind down.
So, what's this got to do with sacrifice?
Well, like it says in the letter to the Hebrews quoted above, there is the idea of Jesus giving up His comfort, His throne in heaven, His human life, to go to the cross and redeem all of mankind from sin. Not to be preachy, but that's the core idea of sacrifice. He gave up something in order to have something greater happen. It's not just giving up something ... that's called abstinence, or even just giving it up. But it's giving up something near and dear to you and knowing that, at some point, something good will come of it that not only benefits you (though it may not, at least not directly), but benefits someone other than you.
That particular verse came to me in the late miles of the LA Marathon in 2006 for Team In Training. TNT raises money for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society It was the first marathon I ran after my Dad's death, and while I knew what to expect, I had forgotten the specific feeling of the experience. And I was feeling a lot of hurt at that point. For some reason, the phrase "for the joy set before Him endured the cross" kept coming to mind. At about mile 22 or 23, I saw the Jose family, who attend my church. Joseph Jose was diagnosed with Hodgkins disease, a blood cancer, back in 2003. But three years later, and cancer free, he stood with his family to cheer for me. And I was reminded in a very tangible way that it was for Joseph, and everyone else suffering from a blood-related cancer, that I was running a marathon. Granted, whatever pain I felt then, and feel during training now, and will feel in Chicago on Oct. 12, is nothing compared to, say, undergoing chemotherapy or living in poverty in the Philippines -- and it's definitely NOT going to the cross bearing the weight of all mankind's sin.
But the idea, the, (ahem, CICF congregation take note) application of that passage to my daily life is to set aside my comfort for the joy of knowing, that somehow, someone will benefit from what I am doing now by training with Gawad Kalinga. I know I sound like a broken record, but I have to keep reminding myself that running Chicago just isn't for me, that training just isn't a way to stay in shape (and keep people thinking I'm much, much younger than I really am) -- that there is something much greater at stake here. Not to be melodramatic, but the idea of focusing attention on poverty, specifically poverty in the Philippines, and also do something about it, and to recruit you all to also help in a small way, reminds me that there are things much bigger than my momentary tiredness or pain from training.
The theme the GK Heroes running (and cycling) are using this year is "LOVE the Poor." The word LOVE is actually an acronym for Lead Others ... be Voices to Empower the Poor. I like how Augustine of Hippo put it hundreds of years ago: "What does love look like? It has the hands to help others. It has the feet to hasten to the poor and needy. It has eyes to see misery and want. It has the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of men. That is what love looks like."
It's a tangible, deeper love that see injustice and seeks to correct it, that encourages people to better themselves, shows them how to do that, and in turn, to be a blessing to others.
So, while the goal is to raise $2,300 to build a home for a family in the Philippines, the long-term goal is to build communities that are self-sustaining and eventually contribute to the fabric of the nation (gawad kalinga = to build a nation).
If you haven't already (and thank you so much to those of you who already have given), please visit my fundraising page for Gawad Kalinga by clicking here. Also, please forward the link of that page and this blog to others you know so that they will have the opportunity to help, too. Spread the blessing that the Lord has given you by being a blessing to others.
And if you think that a small amount is too small to give ... well, there is no such thing ... But if you still feel that way, let me suggest this: Recruit family, friends, co-workers and collectively raise money for the cause. Think of all the water and soda you drink during the course of the week and CRV that goes unclaimed by you when you toss the plastic bottle (hopefully in the blue recycling bin). Why not collect that over, say, a couple weeks, get the CRV and then donate that to Gawad Kalinga? Get a two-for-one in the process ... help the environment and help a family with a new home.
Breaking news ...
Some excitement this morning (Sunday, July 27) ... There was this annoying smell of smoke coming from outside my apartment at about 7:30 a.m. But I just figured it was coming from the park across the way. I had been up for an hour or so, and was getting ready to do some core exercises when there was frantic knocking on my door. Turned out that it was a police officer who was evacuating everyone in my building because an upstairs unit was on fire.
Funny, along with grabbing my phone, I grabbed Taylor, my guitar (it's a Taylor 410ce ... those of you who know me well I think understand ... those of you who don't, yes, it's OK to laugh). Turns out the fire was in a wall in the apartment above and across from my unit. While smokey, the firefighters were able to contain it to that unit. I think the last of us were finally allowed to re-enter our apartments after about 90 minutes or so (I was allowed in after about an hour).
So along with thanking the firefighters, I'm also praising God that it wasn't any worse than it was.
The training calendar
Week 3 was pretty intense in that the week ended with an 18-mile run in the heat and humidity. That was fun ... not. But it's all good, since the weather in Chicago isn't exactly predictable. So preparing in the heat actually is a good thing.
Week 4 was a recovery week: The mileage dropped, and the workouts are not as intense, which allows the body to recovery and get stronger. Endurance athletes call it "absorbing the training."
Week 5 plan:
Monday -- 8 mile easy run
Tuesday and Thursday -- cross train at Cal State San Bernardino
Wednesday -- 8-mile tempo run (steady run at near marathon pace after 2-mile warm-up)
Friday -- easy 8 mile run
Saturday -- 18-20-mile run at Bolsa Chica State Beach with GK Heroes
Sunday -- rest
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