Marathon Reflections
Bev Kauffeldt, program support manager for our work in Liberia and wife of Country Director Kendell, ran the London Marathon on April 17 to raise money for Church-Based Livelihood (CLP) and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) programs. She recently blogged about the experience of completing the 26.2-mile course.
It has been a week since I ran the marathon. At times it feels like it was all a dream and it never really happened, and at times it feels like it was just yesterday (especially when I get out of bed!).
I was not the only one running for Samaritan's Purse. Five other Team SP runners-Jon Chambers, Steve Griffin, Simon Harris, Connie Rozes, and Matt Smith-all finished the marathon. They too were raising money for different projects that SP supports. Together we raised over £23,000 Pounds for SP projects, specifically for water, literacy, and HIV/AIDS.
All of us who had injuries stated that we knew we couldn't quit-there were people who we were running for, all we had to do was think about them and keep running! Whether it was a little girl who has to walk 2-3 hours to get water, or a child living with AIDS, or anyone of the people I have shared with you, they all pushed us to the finish.
I missed my goal time BIG TIME, but as my good friend Buzz said on my Facebook wall, "It may not be the time you desired to finish in, but it was God's time for you to finish." When I read these words I cried. He is right. If I would have got my time it would have been about me, and I have said this whole time it is NOT about me. Instead, God used that suffering to draw me back to why I was running. I'm so thankful that He did.
I think about the marathon a lot-I have no doubt I will for a while. It was such a great experience and I am so grateful for it.
So now what? It's not like I am going to never run again. In fact it is KILLING me not being able to run and take two weeks off!!! There are more stories to tell and more marathons to run. Stay tuned for the next running adventure. It may be sooner than you think!
If you would like to read more about Bev's experience, check out http://ybevruns.blogspot.com/
