I remember when Jeremy and I first began dating. Just hearing his voice made my heart pitter patter! Oh and my stomach was full of butterflies! If you are married, I am sure you remember the beginning months when the newness of the relationship made every single day exciting. There is nothing like it!
Right now I feel like I am falling in love with Jesus all over again. Just hearing His voice and reading His word makes me want to jump for joy, grab my journal and write so I don't miss anything He has to say. I can feel Him pursuing me, chasing me. He longs to show me how much He loves me. The Bible tells us inPsalm 23:6 that His love will pursue us. One of the ways I knew Jeremy was the man God had for me was his pursuit of me. Many guys I had dated before meeting my husband did not pursue me. I ended up doing work I was never intended to do and in doing so, I pursued. Definitely not the way God intended a single girl to find a husband. Nope! We are supposed to be found. (Proverbs 18:22) And that is how I know right now I am hearing God's voice. He is actively pursuing me, making sure I know HE LOVES ME so much and He does not want me to hurt. He longs for me to have VICTORY! That is what I want!
As I ran the Chicago marathon two weeks ago, the Holy Spirit began to speak to me about finishing strong. I didn't want to just finish. I wanted to finish strong. I wanted to cross the finish line knowing I fought my way to get there. For me that would come in the form of shaving off 33 minutes of time from my last marathon. It required me to run faster than I ever thought I was capable of. It required me to run and listen to HIM instead of my iPod. At three miles, I turned the Garmin off, the iPod off and ran on HOLY Ground. With each mile I asked God to speak to me. I would ask "God, what do you want me to know about you? What do you want me to know about myself? How can I pray for my friends? How can I pray for my marriage? How can I pray for Josiah, Ava Beth and Ezekiel?" Before I knew it, I was at mile 23. A part of me did not want the race to end. I didn't want my sweet time with the Lord to be over. We were running together. As I approached the finish line, I knew the whole way I had been running to HIM.
I continue to process all the things He taught me on marathon day. Just like the last marathon, something happens physically and mentally afterwards and I have a bit of a break down. When I get home and get myself acclimated to the non-marathon world, I struggle. But I am still fighting to get to the finish! I am relentless. I won't give up. I want to get to the finish line and celebrate but I know the pain is inevitable. My feet will blister. My legs will ache. My mind will get bored. My hands will be cold and my my knees unstable. There will always be something through out the race. At mile 16 the knees may hurt but by mile 18 the knee pain is no longer noticeable because your hamstrings are tight and cramping. No sooner than the hamstring pain ends, your back begins hurting. The pain just trades places through the body but it never completely stops.
The thing I love most about running is how much it reminds me of real life. It is the most accurate portrait of life I know. A broken relationship can bring so much pain and just when you find find healing and restoration, you are fired from a job. The trials never end. They just change. But you never quit living. You can't! For the joy is in the journey! The finish line would mean nothing if it were easy to get to. It's hard, it's painful, it's sometimes fun and exciting but it's work. The WORK is what makes the finish worth it all.
I don't know about you but I have chosen to keep fighting! I will fight to the finish! Satan better watch out cause I'm one tough girl and I will not give up.
Right now I feel like I am falling in love with Jesus all over again. Just hearing His voice and reading His word makes me want to jump for joy, grab my journal and write so I don't miss anything He has to say. I can feel Him pursuing me, chasing me. He longs to show me how much He loves me. The Bible tells us inPsalm 23:6 that His love will pursue us. One of the ways I knew Jeremy was the man God had for me was his pursuit of me. Many guys I had dated before meeting my husband did not pursue me. I ended up doing work I was never intended to do and in doing so, I pursued. Definitely not the way God intended a single girl to find a husband. Nope! We are supposed to be found. (Proverbs 18:22) And that is how I know right now I am hearing God's voice. He is actively pursuing me, making sure I know HE LOVES ME so much and He does not want me to hurt. He longs for me to have VICTORY! That is what I want!
As I ran the Chicago marathon two weeks ago, the Holy Spirit began to speak to me about finishing strong. I didn't want to just finish. I wanted to finish strong. I wanted to cross the finish line knowing I fought my way to get there. For me that would come in the form of shaving off 33 minutes of time from my last marathon. It required me to run faster than I ever thought I was capable of. It required me to run and listen to HIM instead of my iPod. At three miles, I turned the Garmin off, the iPod off and ran on HOLY Ground. With each mile I asked God to speak to me. I would ask "God, what do you want me to know about you? What do you want me to know about myself? How can I pray for my friends? How can I pray for my marriage? How can I pray for Josiah, Ava Beth and Ezekiel?" Before I knew it, I was at mile 23. A part of me did not want the race to end. I didn't want my sweet time with the Lord to be over. We were running together. As I approached the finish line, I knew the whole way I had been running to HIM.
I continue to process all the things He taught me on marathon day. Just like the last marathon, something happens physically and mentally afterwards and I have a bit of a break down. When I get home and get myself acclimated to the non-marathon world, I struggle. But I am still fighting to get to the finish! I am relentless. I won't give up. I want to get to the finish line and celebrate but I know the pain is inevitable. My feet will blister. My legs will ache. My mind will get bored. My hands will be cold and my my knees unstable. There will always be something through out the race. At mile 16 the knees may hurt but by mile 18 the knee pain is no longer noticeable because your hamstrings are tight and cramping. No sooner than the hamstring pain ends, your back begins hurting. The pain just trades places through the body but it never completely stops.
The thing I love most about running is how much it reminds me of real life. It is the most accurate portrait of life I know. A broken relationship can bring so much pain and just when you find find healing and restoration, you are fired from a job. The trials never end. They just change. But you never quit living. You can't! For the joy is in the journey! The finish line would mean nothing if it were easy to get to. It's hard, it's painful, it's sometimes fun and exciting but it's work. The WORK is what makes the finish worth it all.
I don't know about you but I have chosen to keep fighting! I will fight to the finish! Satan better watch out cause I'm one tough girl and I will not give up.
FIGHTING TO THE FINISH!
-Amanda
A Fight to the Finish
And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours.
This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own.
A Fight to the Finish
And that about wraps it up. God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we'll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours.
This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels. Be prepared. You're up against far more than you can handle on your own.
Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it's all over but the shouting you'll still be on your feet.
Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words.
Learn how to apply them. You'll need them throughout your life.
God's Word is an indispensable weapon.
In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open.
Keep each other's spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.
Ephesians 6:10-18 (The Message)
5 comments:
Keep it going going girl! Your words are an inspiration and encouragement to us all. We all have our own struggles, fears, and idols that we're daily trying to tear down so that we can be built back up on the solid foundation of Jesus! Thank you for sharing what God has spoken to you! For me personally, your words help encourage and give me strength to continue to fight to break those strongholds in my life! I want that victory no matter how difficult the pursuit may be!
Love you!
Kimberly
Wow! You packed a lot in this... I feel like I need to come back and re-read it, digesting a little at a time.
I am so awed by the way you embrace the "hard" and seek God in it. Honestly, if I were running and it hurt, I would stop, I don't want to feel the pain. I can see my response being the same in life, if it hurts, I want to just stop. Your words today are so encouraging because they remind me that when it is hard is when I must press in to Him even more, and trust in His strength not my own. Such a crucial lesson... thank you for reminding me of this today. Now I'm off to seek Him in my own quiet time.
SO glad you are back. I can't tell you how much I have missed your writing and sharing from your heart:-)
Dear Amanda ~
So happy to see you back blogging...I have missed you!
Thank you for this uplifting entry. Keep up the great fight...you are bringing Him the glory all the way through to the finish line!!
I am going in for surgery on Wednesday and will look forward to reading your blog during my hospital stay. I know I can count on words of wisdom and a positive outlook for healing.
Love,
Colleen Pusateri
pusateri_colleen@yahoo.com
That is a powerful journey for sure..I want to run...if you come out like this..I NEED to start running...even if it is not physically!! Love ya!
Thank you, Amanda! How inspiring to hear you connect all parts of your life with your journey to Him. God bless, Margaret
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