On Saturday, I attempted to run a 5k. I signed up weeks ago with the intention of using it to qualify for the DC half marathon. However, I still had not figured out a solution to the pain my feet are causing me and was therefore forced to walk most of the race. My friend Chance came with me, and he did great!
I was starting to get really frustrated! Plus the last doctor I saw said I needed to have an MRI on both feet and ankles. But I would have to cut my grandmothers rings off. She put them on my hand right before she died…they didn’t fit, but she forced them on. They haven’t come off in the eight years since. I will eventually need to have them cut off, but I am not ready for that yet. So I decided to put having the MRI done off until after Christmas.
Anyway, long story short…today my personal trainer cancelled on me so I decided to head to the track for the TeamZ workout. The coach was a little annoyed that I hadn’t been to any of the track workouts. I told him it was because I am unable to run due to injuries on my feet. I showed him what the problem is. He asked why that was a problem when I run…anyway apparently my form was wrong. We tweaked it a little, and I ended up running 2 miles! It was a little uncomfortable, but it didn’t hurt! I think as I get used to it, it will all work out.
I am really excited about this! I hope to continue to build up my distance and continue training. Maybe even in January I will be able to sign up for another 5k…and maybe use it to qualify for the half marathon if registration isn’t filled up by then. Keeping my fingers crossed…
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Extremely Thankful for the Challenges in Life...Why the Ironman?
SORRY...this should have been published November 16th, but for some reason I only had it saved as a draft.
It is the challenges we are able to overcome that bring about the greatest blessings.
Yesterday I was truly humbled, both physically and spiritually. I was in a lot of pain, more than usual. While I was attempting to run, my body wasn’t working. So I attempted to walk. That wasn’t working too well either. I started to cry…in the middle of a sidewalk in downtown Alexandria. “Why won’t my body do what I am trying to get it to do? Why can’t hard work and faith be enough to make this pass? Am I going to be ready to finish an Ironman triathlon come November 5, 2011? Why does it have to be this hard?”
So as I was having this breakdown, I was comforted by the spirit. I was prompted to get a Priesthood blessing. It made me think about the power of the priesthood. I questioned myself as to why I hadn’t asked for a blessing sooner?! I have the faith in the power of the priesthood. I know that ANYTHING is possible! My heavenly father has blessings he wants to pour out unto me…all I have to do is ask for them! I called my dear friend, Dawn. I asked if her fiancé, Michael, and another friend, Chance, could come over and give me a blessing.
After a very long and surprisingly emotional day, I was able to get the blessing. It was exactly what I needed to hear. I am thankful for the power of the priesthood. I am even more thankful to have friends that are worthy to hold the power that comes from God, and are able to bless me with it.
This is a short video that helped me get through my day:
The thoughts that really hit close to home were the following:
“In the hardest trials, as long as you have the power to pray, you can ask a loving God, ‘Please, let me serve this day.’ It doesn’t matter to me how few things I may be able to do, just let me know what I can do. I will obey this day. I know that I can, with thy help.”
“As hard as things seem today, they will be better in the next day if you choose to serve the Lord this day.”
The reason I want to be an Ironman is because I always want to challenge myself. I can’t think of a bigger challenge than the Ironman Triathlon. I want to serve and motivate other people suffering from fibromyalgia. Doctors recommend that people with fibromyalgia exercise, no matter how hard it may seem. By doing an Ironman triathlon, I hope to show those people that fibromyalgia may slow us down, but that we don’t have to let it stop us. Yes, some days are really hard! Yesterday was a really hard day for me! But today was a new day. It was a new day for me to prove that I am stronger than fibromyalgia.
I know we are NEVER given more than we can handle. In some ways, I am thankful for the challenges I get to overcome. They make me super strong! My challenges teach me different things. Yesterday, my challenges taught me humility. I needed to be humbled literally to my knees to see that I had too much pride…so much so that I didn’t think I needed the help that would come from asking for a priesthood blessing.
The rest of my thoughts can be summed up in a talk I was able to give in church last year. The topic was “Finding Joy in the Journey” and I was asked to focus on President Monson’s Spring 2009 Conference Talk. Just for the record…I love the journey called life. It is awesome, and even in those humbling moments, I know that I am here on earth for a reason, and there is a lot of work to do while I am here.
Here’s some of the highlights from the talk I gave…
The Apostle Paul declared, “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
This is how we will be able to overcome anything and everything that comes our way. Will it remove our troubles? Of course not. But it will enable us to face our challenges, and as President Monson said, “we will meet them head on, and emerge victoriously.”
One of my favorite quotes from the Book of Mormon is from Jacob. Jacob talks about some hard stuff. He comments on it a few times saying I wish I didn’t have to say these things. But two of the most comforting scriptures come from Jacob. Jacob 3:2-3 says “But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart. (That’s us….the one’s that make Jesus Christ the center of our lives) Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions, and he will plead your cause, and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction.
O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads and receive the pleasing word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever.” Jacob 3:2-3
There are so many stories in the scriptures about those who have overcome and persevered through the hard times. Look at Nephi, from first Nephi. As John Bytheway (he's awesome) once said…Nephi had what you would call a dysfunctional family. I mean his brothers tied him up, tried to kill him. Hello?! In yet, he knew his father was a prophet, and he obeyed. He lived by faith, not fear.
One day I was driving down a street in the Boston area, and I noticed the car in front of me doing quite a bit of swerving. Although it was only 3 o’clock in the afternoon, my initial reaction was that this person was driving under the influence of something and that I should notify the authorities. But, as I looked a little closer, I noticed he was trying to avoid some of the potholes and bumps along the road. He had a very small car that sat low on the ground. Occasionally he would miss, and his car would have to take on the pothole.
This is not something I immediately noticed, because although I was familiar with the rough pavement on the road, I had a mini-SUV and was less concerned about a little bump or bruise along the way.
Let’s face it the road in life can get a little bumpy.
I have noticed that some people handle the little bumps (challenges) along the road better than others. Since joining the church I can certainly attest that I feel I can handle the bumps much better than I ever would have been able to before converting. Again, when we make Jesus Christ the center of our lives, we can handle every bump and bruise along the way, all while standing steadfast, and holding firm to the iron rod.
I don’t know how many of you are interested in football…but I am hoping this story will touch your heart as much as it did mine. Sean McHugh. Him and his wife had just bought their first house, and were expecting their second child. He had just survived final cut day with the Detroit Lions, and was expecting to start at fullback and would play for the league minimum – of about $520,000 for his experience level.
Then he was summoned into the team president’s office. As you can imagine, this is not the dream of any player. He got cut, fired, laid off by Detroit. Just like that, Sean McHugh was deemed not good enough to play for the lowly Lions, who would go winless – the first 0-16 season in league history.
Getting fired hurt for more than economic reasons. Being a football player wasn’t just a job, it was an identity. This was humiliating, hurtful, and confusing.
“One of the hardest things you have to deal with [is] failing and feeling that you’re not good enough,” he said.
“I left all my stuff in my locker. I didn’t want any of that stuff any more. I got in the car and called my wife. She was as shocked as I was. I went home. I was mad and complained a little bit.”
One night a couple months later, he received a call: “Hey, the Steelers want to bring you in and check you out,” the agent said.
He went from getting cut from the Detroit Lions and thinking life was over, to playing in the Super Bowl. There’s never been a story like McHugh’s in the NFL because there’s never been a team as bad as the Lions this season. This wasn’t just worst to first, it’s worst-ever to first.
Him and his wife were able to handle the bumps and bruises that took them from Detroit to Pittsburgh. There were some severe bumps during that journey, but they made it. I hope that if I were ever put in a similar position, a position where I hit the lowest of low, I would have help from Jesus Christ. I have the gift of the Holy Ghost that will comfort me when I get a bump and bruise along the way. And I will be of good cheer.
Currently I am the only one in my family who is a member of the church. And when I first went through the temple I was sad. It was such a special and indescribably awesome experience, don’t get me wrong. But I was sad that I couldn’t share it with my parents. It is such a holy place, and there is so much peace that floods my heart while I am there. I don’t think it is possible to have a single doubt about the truthfulness of this gospel, or the love of Jesus Christ while I am in the temple.
I just couldn’t go an entire talk without mentioning missionary work. I know that there has been a big push for missionary work in our stake, and throughout the church. It seems to come up all the time. I once even heard somebody complain about it’s frequency. I don’t know about you, but I’d listen to lessons on missionary work every single week if it meant not having to hear one about marriage. But that’s just me.
But seriously, because of member missionary work my life has changed. I know now, how to be of good cheer. I once explained my life before the church vs. after joining the church as an oreo cookie. Let’s face it, those things are awesome. They are so good. The outside, then inside…it’s just a little taste of heaven. Well, before I joined the church I was happy. I was even more sarcastic than I am now, but I was happy. However, when I joined this church, it was like my oreo cookie being dipped in milk for the first time. I mean if you thought it was good before, it’s even better than you could have ever imagined when you dip it in milk.
We need to be sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with those around us. We can’t be afraid. I love D&C 68:6 “Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the son of the living God.”
The reason there is such a push for missionary work, is because it’s not happening enough. I can’t imagine a convert ever complaining about hearing another talk on missionary work. We know how important it is, and how life changing it can be. So please think about that next time it comes up in Sacrament meeting, or Priesthood/Relief Society….anywhere. We have reason to be happy, and have faith which helps us get through the tough times. We need to share that so that others may also be of good cheer and have that faith.
I am so thankful for this church. I am thankful for the knowledge that I have of Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice. I am thankful for my relationship with him. I am thankful for prophets, including President Thomas S. Monson, who is able to serve as a prophet, seer, and revelator.
I am thankful for the challenges in life I have been able to overcome. While I am not quite humble enough to be thankful for the challenges I am currently facing, I know I will be thankful for those as well. I know that as hard as life sometimes seems, and as low as it appears I am sometimes, there is a super bowl in my future.
Let’s work hard to not get busy trying to live the life we planned instead of the one that was meant for us. Because as soon as we get comfortable, chances are, during our journey on the road of life, we will hit a pothole.
It is the challenges we are able to overcome that bring about the greatest blessings.
Yesterday I was truly humbled, both physically and spiritually. I was in a lot of pain, more than usual. While I was attempting to run, my body wasn’t working. So I attempted to walk. That wasn’t working too well either. I started to cry…in the middle of a sidewalk in downtown Alexandria. “Why won’t my body do what I am trying to get it to do? Why can’t hard work and faith be enough to make this pass? Am I going to be ready to finish an Ironman triathlon come November 5, 2011? Why does it have to be this hard?”
So as I was having this breakdown, I was comforted by the spirit. I was prompted to get a Priesthood blessing. It made me think about the power of the priesthood. I questioned myself as to why I hadn’t asked for a blessing sooner?! I have the faith in the power of the priesthood. I know that ANYTHING is possible! My heavenly father has blessings he wants to pour out unto me…all I have to do is ask for them! I called my dear friend, Dawn. I asked if her fiancé, Michael, and another friend, Chance, could come over and give me a blessing.
After a very long and surprisingly emotional day, I was able to get the blessing. It was exactly what I needed to hear. I am thankful for the power of the priesthood. I am even more thankful to have friends that are worthy to hold the power that comes from God, and are able to bless me with it.
This is a short video that helped me get through my day:
The thoughts that really hit close to home were the following:
“In the hardest trials, as long as you have the power to pray, you can ask a loving God, ‘Please, let me serve this day.’ It doesn’t matter to me how few things I may be able to do, just let me know what I can do. I will obey this day. I know that I can, with thy help.”
“As hard as things seem today, they will be better in the next day if you choose to serve the Lord this day.”
The reason I want to be an Ironman is because I always want to challenge myself. I can’t think of a bigger challenge than the Ironman Triathlon. I want to serve and motivate other people suffering from fibromyalgia. Doctors recommend that people with fibromyalgia exercise, no matter how hard it may seem. By doing an Ironman triathlon, I hope to show those people that fibromyalgia may slow us down, but that we don’t have to let it stop us. Yes, some days are really hard! Yesterday was a really hard day for me! But today was a new day. It was a new day for me to prove that I am stronger than fibromyalgia.
I know we are NEVER given more than we can handle. In some ways, I am thankful for the challenges I get to overcome. They make me super strong! My challenges teach me different things. Yesterday, my challenges taught me humility. I needed to be humbled literally to my knees to see that I had too much pride…so much so that I didn’t think I needed the help that would come from asking for a priesthood blessing.
The rest of my thoughts can be summed up in a talk I was able to give in church last year. The topic was “Finding Joy in the Journey” and I was asked to focus on President Monson’s Spring 2009 Conference Talk. Just for the record…I love the journey called life. It is awesome, and even in those humbling moments, I know that I am here on earth for a reason, and there is a lot of work to do while I am here.
Here’s some of the highlights from the talk I gave…
The Apostle Paul declared, “God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
This is how we will be able to overcome anything and everything that comes our way. Will it remove our troubles? Of course not. But it will enable us to face our challenges, and as President Monson said, “we will meet them head on, and emerge victoriously.”
One of my favorite quotes from the Book of Mormon is from Jacob. Jacob talks about some hard stuff. He comments on it a few times saying I wish I didn’t have to say these things. But two of the most comforting scriptures come from Jacob. Jacob 3:2-3 says “But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart. (That’s us….the one’s that make Jesus Christ the center of our lives) Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions, and he will plead your cause, and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction.
O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads and receive the pleasing word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever.” Jacob 3:2-3
There are so many stories in the scriptures about those who have overcome and persevered through the hard times. Look at Nephi, from first Nephi. As John Bytheway (he's awesome) once said…Nephi had what you would call a dysfunctional family. I mean his brothers tied him up, tried to kill him. Hello?! In yet, he knew his father was a prophet, and he obeyed. He lived by faith, not fear.
One day I was driving down a street in the Boston area, and I noticed the car in front of me doing quite a bit of swerving. Although it was only 3 o’clock in the afternoon, my initial reaction was that this person was driving under the influence of something and that I should notify the authorities. But, as I looked a little closer, I noticed he was trying to avoid some of the potholes and bumps along the road. He had a very small car that sat low on the ground. Occasionally he would miss, and his car would have to take on the pothole.
This is not something I immediately noticed, because although I was familiar with the rough pavement on the road, I had a mini-SUV and was less concerned about a little bump or bruise along the way.
Let’s face it the road in life can get a little bumpy.
I have noticed that some people handle the little bumps (challenges) along the road better than others. Since joining the church I can certainly attest that I feel I can handle the bumps much better than I ever would have been able to before converting. Again, when we make Jesus Christ the center of our lives, we can handle every bump and bruise along the way, all while standing steadfast, and holding firm to the iron rod.
I don’t know how many of you are interested in football…but I am hoping this story will touch your heart as much as it did mine. Sean McHugh. Him and his wife had just bought their first house, and were expecting their second child. He had just survived final cut day with the Detroit Lions, and was expecting to start at fullback and would play for the league minimum – of about $520,000 for his experience level.
Then he was summoned into the team president’s office. As you can imagine, this is not the dream of any player. He got cut, fired, laid off by Detroit. Just like that, Sean McHugh was deemed not good enough to play for the lowly Lions, who would go winless – the first 0-16 season in league history.
Getting fired hurt for more than economic reasons. Being a football player wasn’t just a job, it was an identity. This was humiliating, hurtful, and confusing.
“One of the hardest things you have to deal with [is] failing and feeling that you’re not good enough,” he said.
“I left all my stuff in my locker. I didn’t want any of that stuff any more. I got in the car and called my wife. She was as shocked as I was. I went home. I was mad and complained a little bit.”
One night a couple months later, he received a call: “Hey, the Steelers want to bring you in and check you out,” the agent said.
He went from getting cut from the Detroit Lions and thinking life was over, to playing in the Super Bowl. There’s never been a story like McHugh’s in the NFL because there’s never been a team as bad as the Lions this season. This wasn’t just worst to first, it’s worst-ever to first.
Him and his wife were able to handle the bumps and bruises that took them from Detroit to Pittsburgh. There were some severe bumps during that journey, but they made it. I hope that if I were ever put in a similar position, a position where I hit the lowest of low, I would have help from Jesus Christ. I have the gift of the Holy Ghost that will comfort me when I get a bump and bruise along the way. And I will be of good cheer.
Currently I am the only one in my family who is a member of the church. And when I first went through the temple I was sad. It was such a special and indescribably awesome experience, don’t get me wrong. But I was sad that I couldn’t share it with my parents. It is such a holy place, and there is so much peace that floods my heart while I am there. I don’t think it is possible to have a single doubt about the truthfulness of this gospel, or the love of Jesus Christ while I am in the temple.
I just couldn’t go an entire talk without mentioning missionary work. I know that there has been a big push for missionary work in our stake, and throughout the church. It seems to come up all the time. I once even heard somebody complain about it’s frequency. I don’t know about you, but I’d listen to lessons on missionary work every single week if it meant not having to hear one about marriage. But that’s just me.
But seriously, because of member missionary work my life has changed. I know now, how to be of good cheer. I once explained my life before the church vs. after joining the church as an oreo cookie. Let’s face it, those things are awesome. They are so good. The outside, then inside…it’s just a little taste of heaven. Well, before I joined the church I was happy. I was even more sarcastic than I am now, but I was happy. However, when I joined this church, it was like my oreo cookie being dipped in milk for the first time. I mean if you thought it was good before, it’s even better than you could have ever imagined when you dip it in milk.
We need to be sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with those around us. We can’t be afraid. I love D&C 68:6 “Wherefore, be of good cheer, and do not fear, for I the Lord am with you, and will stand by you; and ye shall bear record of me, even Jesus Christ, that I am the son of the living God.”
The reason there is such a push for missionary work, is because it’s not happening enough. I can’t imagine a convert ever complaining about hearing another talk on missionary work. We know how important it is, and how life changing it can be. So please think about that next time it comes up in Sacrament meeting, or Priesthood/Relief Society….anywhere. We have reason to be happy, and have faith which helps us get through the tough times. We need to share that so that others may also be of good cheer and have that faith.
I am so thankful for this church. I am thankful for the knowledge that I have of Jesus Christ and his atoning sacrifice. I am thankful for my relationship with him. I am thankful for prophets, including President Thomas S. Monson, who is able to serve as a prophet, seer, and revelator.
I am thankful for the challenges in life I have been able to overcome. While I am not quite humble enough to be thankful for the challenges I am currently facing, I know I will be thankful for those as well. I know that as hard as life sometimes seems, and as low as it appears I am sometimes, there is a super bowl in my future.
Let’s work hard to not get busy trying to live the life we planned instead of the one that was meant for us. Because as soon as we get comfortable, chances are, during our journey on the road of life, we will hit a pothole.
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