Commitments

“Commit your actions to the Lord, and your plans will succeed.” (Proverbs 16:3 NLT) 

 

I find that commitments are easier to keep when I have accountability. The first step of any intention is to entrust everything to God. I ask for wisdom, direction, motivation, and adaptability. By putting the Lord in charge, my burden is lightened. Then, I recruit at least one human to check in with me periodically and help me stay on track. Writing down my goals is another way I remain dedicated. 

 

Five months ago, I started thinking about running another marathon. Due to the pandemic, I didn’t know if any scheduled races would actually take place. All of the races I had signed up for in the past year have been run virtually. A virtual race is where you run by yourself in a location of your choice and submit your distance and times through a GPS device. Without the cheering crowds and camaraderie of other runners, a virtual marathon is even more monotonous and grueling than an in-person race. 

 

Since it takes several months to train for such a long distance, I had to make a decision without knowing the outcome. I committed my plans to the Lord. I asked for accountability from a few people. My husband agreed to run with me. We signed up for a race and paid the registration fees. I wrote down a detailed plan. For the last twenty weeks, we have been training intensely toward this goal. Due to the recent surge in Covid infections, we have had to make a difficult decision. We have opted to run this marathon as a virtual race. 

 

Now it may seem like my plans fell through, even though I committed everything to the Lord. Although I am disappointed in the way things turned out, I am at peace. By handing everything over to God, including the outcome, I was free to focus my energy on what I had to do. I reaped all the benefits of training for the last five months. My legs are muscular. My lungs are powerful. My heart is healthy. My mind is resilient. Most of all, my confidence in God is strong.