GPS free = freedom

Before my last race I told my husband I was going to take a month off and get fat and lazy.  Well....that lasted about three days.  I was on the treadmill after a week.  Today, two weeks later, I went for a nice brisk run OUTSIDE!  It was beautiful.   

The best part?  Well, it was a GPS-free day.  That meant I didn't know how fast or how far.  That also meant I was free to enjoy the day, 

enjoy the scenery,

and my talk with God. 

Oh, how I missed my talks with God.  I know, it's only been two weeks, and it's not like I haven't prayed in two week because I have.  It's just, well, I was praising God for the day and suddenly it hit me, I missed my quiet time with Abba Father.  When you have that, a personal, intimate relationship with the Father you miss it when it's gone. I didn't realize that until today. 

That made me think of my family. My son's on the other side of the world (until May and then he's a tiny bit closer), my mom and grandmother are 13-hours away, and then there's my sister.  I haven't seen her in years. I miss her.  She lives near my mother, however, there is tension there.  I'm very angry with my sister right now because she didn't come to Thanksgiving.  I drove 13 hours to see her, however, she did not drive 10 minutes to come see me or the rest of the family.  I forgive her though, because as I was praying for her, these thoughts came to my mind,  "whoever forgives little is forgiven little."   This is a paraphrase of several of Jesus' parables.  Matthew 18 and Luke 7.

So, sister, I forgive you.  I miss you and I love you.  

Why is GPS-free = freedom?   Because running GPS-free reminded me of how much I love my time with God, my time with God reminded me of forgiveness, forgiveness reminded me of freedom with Christ.  

Galatians 5:1  It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.

Be blessed.

Run Free.

Women's Running Recipe

For those who asked.  Here is my dairy-free, Peanut Butter, Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe.  I keep meaning to figure out the nutrition value in these.  I will eventually. These cookies are not overly sweet.  More like a yummy energy bar. 
 (edited 8/19 - I made these yesterday and forgot the flour.  Turned out very moist, so add flour or not, your choice, up to 2 cups)

Ingredients:
2 cups all-natural peanut butter
1 cup unprocessed honey
2 eggs
1/4 cup + 2 Tbs all natural applesauce
2-1/2 cups oats
1 cup whole wheat flour
10 ounces dairy-free dark chocolate chips 
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Process
Melt the peanut butter and chocolate chips in the microwave on low heat (melt but don't cook).  Add the remainder of the ingredients in order listed, one at a time, mixing well. Let ingredients sit for 15-20 minutes.  This allows the oats to soften and lets all the ingredients get happy.  If the mix is drier than bread dough, add a few more Tbs of water or applesauce.  Spoon onto parchment-lined cookie sheet.  Press down to shape.  Bake at 350 until brown, 8-10 minutes.  Makes 44.  

Diary free cooking

Cookies! Dairy-free

So, what are you going to do now?

This was the question my husband asked me as I hobbled up the stairs yesterday.  My answer was, "Take a shower and then a nap."  That wasn't exactly what he meant, however, I was too brain dead to comprehend.

You see, I had just completed a marathon. My second, in fact.  This was the RunDisney marathon at Walt Disney World in Florida.  I had been training pretty much since the disastrous race in Melbourne eleven months ago, but I won't rehash that.  

If you've been a follower of my blog for any length of time, you know my story.  I love to run. I have had shoulder injuries, knee injuries, hip injuries, a broken toe, stomach flu, food allergies, and lost many toe nails.  Yet, I still run, still persevere.  Why?  I'm not really sure.  I like the competition but I'm not overly competitive.  I like to stay in shape, be healthy, but I'm not obsessive.  (My family may argue otherwise).  

I believe I run for the following reasons:
1.  Health.   I'm 47 years old and I want to stay active and enjoy a healthy life, live long enough to be able to play with my yet unborn grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
2. Prayer.  I began praying on my runs just to get me through the next mile.  As time went on and my runs became longer I incorporated prayer into my routine.  It became habit.  Two steps into my run my thoughts immediately start with, "Good morning God, beautiful day." I can pray for hours now.  In fact, 4 hours and 38 minutes.  
3. Thrill of the chase.  I'm a bit claustrophobic in crowds.  I always line up as far to the front as I can and often to one side or the other.  When the gun goes off, I go as fast as I can to get away from the crowd.  In doing this, I found it was kinda fun to pass people and zip in and out of traffic like a gazelle running through a herd of zebra.   My favorite races are those in which I am able to pick a person to pass and do so.
4.  Satisfaction and feeling of accomplishment.   My goal in a race is to a) beat my last time and b) be satisfied with the time.   B is really hard to attain because I always look back and think about what I could have done differently, should I have stopped at that water stop, tried to speed up even more at the finish, etc.   I start my running prayer with Good morning and finish each race with "Thank you Jesus!"  

 Deep down, I know God doesn't really care about who wins the race, however, as it says in Corinthians, he cares about winning the final race, the one that lasts forever.  This past week on my computer screen has been 1 Corinthians 9: 24 Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. ²⁵ Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever.

On my wrist during the race were bands that read, "Can do through Christ."   This is a verse from Phillipians 4:13  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.  

I suppose I run to be closer to God, to strengthen not only my physical body but my spiritual one as well.  When I'm in pain, whether from running or life in general, I turn to Him for strength.  When I succeed, it is God whom I thank.  When I fail, I still give him thanks and ask for strength and for lessons learned.  

So, what am I going to do now?  I'm going to turn to God and ask Him.  We'll let you know. 

I love great reviews...

Here's the newest review of "Remnant":

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read! Two Thumbs Up! January 3, 2013

By CK3

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

While looking for interesting reads, I downloaded this book to my kindle. After reading the write-up I was afraid it would be a girls/teen book. Wow Was I Wrong! Excellent premise, great characters, excitement, adventure, suspense, and yes sadness but no spoilers. The main character goes on a quest to find anyone who may have survived a catastrophic event that has wiped the Earth clean. Along the way, she meets some others who have survived. This character grows up fast in this new world and you grow with her. Anyone in this position has to have faith and she does!

Remnants took me 2 evenings to read and I was sad that it ended! My daughter is now starting to read it. I anxiously await the next book. I will also be looking for other books from this author!

Okay, so maybe I will write a sequel....  After the marathon I'll have some time on my hands.  Look for it late Spring, early Summer. 

An endorsement for "Remnant"

Below is a repost of a blog endorsing my book:

Do you make New Year's resolutions? Plan to write more? Submit more? Self publish?
Make a resolution to support fellow writers with endorsements.

Buy on Amazon

I highly endorse Remnant by Colleen Wait. Remnant is Colleen's ninth inspirational novel. She self publishes and has a large readership following on her blog and on Amazon were many positive reviews have been posted.

Colleen's latest book, Remnant, explores the character of several young adults (teens) who have survived a catastrophic event that forced them underground. Her main character's quest to survive and learn what remains of the earth and the "why" of her survival is crucial to her maturity.

Topics of contemporary concern are dealt with in a sensitive manner so that the book is appropriate for mature 13-14 year-olds. I highly recommend Remnant as a book club choice for young adults as well as adult readers.

I must insert a disclaimer. Colleen is my daughter and I'm very proud of her and her writing. As a writer, I would not endorse her books just because....
I designed her cover.

http://carol-weishampel.blogspot.com/2013/01/whats-new.html

Thanks Mom (and a fan)!!