Life is a Marathon.

Life is full of unexpected events and circumstances.  I prefer to focus my efforts on improving those things that I have control over in my life.

 A few months ago I signed up for a marathon. Over the past few months I have learned a lot about myself. There have been days that I don't want to wake up and run. I want to stay in bed and sleep for an exra hour. There have been days where I can hardly make it up the stairs at work and I wonder how on earth I would ever be able to go out and run 20 miles. There have been Friday nights that I just want to go to bed at 2:00 in the morning, and know that I can sleep in the next day.

The key to all this, is that I made a choice. I chose to commit myself to doing something very difficult. That choice has required an incredible amount of self-dicipline and personal committment.  My body has accustomed to the waking in the early mornings. My shoes have gotten progressively more comfortable, and my lung capacity is more able to sustain me on long runs. I have learned that you don't even have to run the entire time. Sometimes it takes 30 seconds of slowing down the pace, to let myself catch my breath.

Life is a marathon people. We just
 have to keep moving forward. Sometimes we get tired and have to slow down for a second and remember our goals. There are often what seem to be endless hills. Sometimes the roads are closed (welcome to Provo) and we have to take a detour. Often we want to just give up, but we have to rely on our friends and family to encourage us to just keep going. 

Anyone can run for a mile, but there are very few who can run a marathon. I also believe that there are very few people who can constantly remind themselves of who they want to become, and remain true to those goals. It's not worth saying we will run 20 miles, and running 19 1/2. We can't cut ourselves short of what it will feel like at the end of the race, knowing we gave it everything we had, and we didn't give up on ourselves.
Our lives are a result of the choices we make. We can set goals to do things we never though we could accomplish. We have control of our own destiny. It's important to remind ourselve of this sometimes when things happen that maybe weren't in line with what we had in mind. Life happens. We must choose to make the best of every situation. Setting goals helps me to feel that I am making the most of the gift I've been given, and that is, the gift of life.

"...it is good, on occasion, for everyone to face adversity, especially if it causes introspection that enables us to openly and honestly assess our lives.  Sometimes we need a personal crisis to reinforce in our minds what we really value and cherish. All of us must come to an honest, open self-examination, an awareness within as to who and what we want to be.." -M. Russel Ballard

"...set short-term goals that you can reach. Set goals that are well balanced—not too many nor too few, and not too high nor too low. Write down your attainable goals and work on them according to their importance. Pray for divine guidance in your goal setting...Often the lack of clear direction and goals can waste away our time and energy and contribute to imbalance in our lives." - Richard G. Scott 

"I urge you to examine your life. Determine where you are and what you need to do to be the kind of person you want to be. Create inspiring, noble, and righteous goals that fire your imagination and create excitement in your heart. And then keep your eye on them. Work consistently towards achieving them." -Joseph B. Wirthlin
I am grateful for the life I have been given, and the experiences I have been blessed with [both good & bad]. Even though we face challenges in our lives, I believe with all of my heart, that God knows us each individually.