Getting Unstuck…

Runnning In Paradise … aka …Home

So I had a pity party the other morning. I allowed a circumstance that isn’t life threatening or life altering really, to creep into my heart and reek havoc on my perspective. It took my focus off what was really important in the moment – getting the kids off to school – and placed me in a position of sadness and despair. I needed to head out for a run, but rain was threatening and my calf began cramping up a few days ago and I was nervous about creating an injury before my big race. I didn’t want to run, I didn’t want to be kind to my kids, I wanted answers as to why this certain area of our life never seems to improve.

As we got into the car I appologized for my attitude and assured them that my actions had nothing to do with them. I dropped them off and sat in the car for a bit really not wanting to get out. But get out I did and as I began running I turned on the most recent podcast by Donald Miller. It was an interview with Scott Hamilton. Talk about an amazing guy with an incredible ability to keep his eyes focused on the goal and not get bogged down in the everyday. He said something that I loved, this was his description of himself….

What’s amazing is that no matter what he has faced he has used it to help himself and others win. Scott is a 4 time gold medalist, 2 time cancer survivor, he has been instrumental in research for cancer treatment and adopted two little girls from Haiti. It’s hard to come up with reasons to feel sorry for yourself when you listen to a story like that. It made my issue seem rather trivial in fact.

A few hours later I met up with my friend Tresa for coffee. (I want to be like her when I grow up. She glows Jesus.) While we were chatting we ran into a few ladies that I hadn’t seen in a while. They were spending the day with their daughter’s (10 year olds) as one of them was heading in for surgery the next morning for a biopsy to determine if the lumps in her neck were cancerous. Talk about a total slap in the face. At this moment I felt utterly ashamed at my attitude earlier in the day. I had allowed my emotions to take over a situation that isn’t any better or worse than it has been in the past.

Why do I do this? Why do I allow things to creep into my heart and create havoc where moments before there was peace? It’s crazy because here I sit, several weeks later and the situation that was so overwhelming and terrible and causing such angst in that moment hasn’t changed and yet today it’s not taking over my world. What I learned out of that situation is a few things that I need to do when I begin to feel overwhelmed by my life or even just a particular situation. Hopefully a few of these things will help you if you ever find yourself in the same situation.

Change the Scenery. Get outside or go take a drive, anything that removes you from your present state and gives you a new perspective. For me listening to that podcast was huge. It reminded me that everyone’s life is hard and has great challenges and that I have a choice as to how I am going to deal with my little world. I can either remain stuck or keep moving forward and use my experiences to help others. As I listened to that interview with Scott Hamilton on my run I remember taking a few deep breaths and acknowledging to myself that my situation, although hard, could be so much worse and that I have so much to be grateful for.

Get With People. I have a very hard time thinking about myself when I am with other people. Going for coffee, meeting up with good friends, it’s amazing how sharing life with others changes your perspective on things. I didn’t ever mention to them what had happened that morning as it seemed so trivial in light of what was going on in their lives at the moment. Again, I took deep breaths as I let the stresses of my life roll off my back so that I could focus on what was going on with this family in particular. We prayed over the little girl and I was so thankful that God had allowed me the opportunity to get out of my head and into the lives of others.

Pray. My heart was changed by what God allowed me to encounter that morning and I prayed a prayer of thankfulness. I was thankful that I had the ability to run, thankful that I have friends who love me and thankful that no matter what happens or how bad things get that I have a God who loves me and who has a plan. I prayed again for the little girl and found out a few days later that all was well. The lumps are not cancerous and she is going to be ok.