Offering It Up

Before running the L.A. Marathon last year, it occurred to me that I might need some extra motivation to carry me through those later miles. When I was sore and miserable, I figured, I would need a really good reason — indeed, a cause — to inspire me to the finish line.

So I spent some time thinking and praying about it, and finally, the idea hit me: Mr. C.

Mr. C was the dad of my childhood best friend and the first marathoner I ever knew. He was passionate about his running, and in some small way, his example helped spur my own desire to run a marathon some 20 years after I used to watch him come and go on his training runs from my friend’s house on late summer afternoons. As I wrote yesterday, Mr. C committed suicide about a dozen years ago.

Knowing that prayers are never wasted, and that Mr. C’s soul and his family may be able to use my intercession, I decided to offer up any suffering during the marathon day (and, alas, there was much of it!) for him.

While the spiritual benefits of that effort, for now anyway, remain unknown, the tangible benefits for yours truly were powerful. It really did make each post-hitting-the-wall step (a little bit) easier knowing that, in some way, this good man and his family might be benefitting.

Suffering, it is said, should never be wasted. And running, it should be noted, offers it in spades. Uniting that suffering with Christ's is a good way to make long runs more than just exercise, but a sacrifice and a prayer.