Earlier this summer, I was pleasantly surprised when I received my mid-year fitness summary: I had run over 100 miles in the previous four months.
For those of you who have been running your whole lives, this probably seems like nothing; but to me, who hadn’t run more than maybe one-tenth of a mile straight until three years ago, this is quite an achievement!
As running has become more and more integrated into my life, this means that I’ve had many miles of pavement to muse on the deeper things in life, such as what I’m going to have for dinner, when this hill will end, and watch out for that dog! Oh, and God. I’ve had a lot of time to think about—and talk with—God.
I’ve discovered that there is quite a bit in common with how I approach running and with how I do (or should) approach developing my faith life with God.
Perseverance
As you have probably surmised, running is not something that comes naturally to me. So when I first set out with a goal to run a 5K, I knew that it wouldn’t be easy. As I started to train, I had a lot of doubts in my mind, and I came up with a lot of reasons to just give up. Yet, with every additional minute that I tacked onto my running time, and with each hill I conquered, I started to realize that I could do this running thing. And I ended up meeting my goal of running that 5K… and meeting it again, and again, and again. To be a runner, you have to have a lot of perseverance: to not give up when you feel like you just can’t run another minute, and to keep pushing when you are almost to the top of the hill.
The same is true for running with God. A lot of times, it feels like it would be a lot easier to just give up. Doubts creep in and excuses become more reasonable sounding. Yet, with each “hill” you tackle in the spiritual life, you realize that living a life with God is worth it. Yes, being a Christian is not easy. It may not come naturally to us with our fallen natures, but living a life for God and with God is something that with a lot of perseverance, we are all able to achieve.
Stop Comparing
It is easy to get discouraged when you’re running a race and get passed by a mom pushing a double stroller while you are just trying to put one foot in front of the other. Unless you are an Olympic runner competing for the gold medal, comparison can be a runner’s worse enemy. I learned pretty quickly that it didn’t help me run any better or any faster by comparing myself to others’ abilities. It doesn’t matter if I have a better time than that mom with a double stroller who is also working her hardest. What matters is that I am running to the best of my own abilities, and that I am doing the best that I am capable of doing in that moment.
The same is true for our faith journeys. It is easy to start comparing your faith life to the faith of others. She is able to get to daily Mass, I wish I had time to do that. He spends an hour in adoration every day. How much more amazing would my prayer life be if I did that? They seem so in love with God, why can’t I have that? But comparing your faith to another’s more often leads to discouragement than to motivation to improve your own faith. God doesn’t want you to take the same faith journey of your priest, or your best friend, or your neighbor. He wants your faith to be the best that you personally can make it. He wants to have an intimate and personal relationship with you that is unlike any other. He wants us to stop comparing and start running our own journey.
