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| Excited for my first Half Marathon ... gotta love the free stuff! |
I've been giddy and excited about my first Half Marathon since I registered back in September. I slowly started training, but seriously started training back in November/December. Disney's Princess Half Marathon was about so much more than running 13.1 miles just to say I've done it. First, I ran for Abolition International and we, Team Freedom, raised over $50,000 to help this phenomenal organization in their efforts to end human trafficking around the globe. This cause has been very close to my heart ever since my first trip to Thailand several years back, where the Lord really softened my heart and opened up my eyes to all the helpless women and children who have been sold into this industry. It's heart-breaking. Please read this post from January's Human Trafficking Awareness Day:
http://www.lizzychristian.com/2/post/2012/01/christ-broke-our-chains-lets-help-break-theirs-human-trafficking-awareness-day.html. Please consider giving a voice to the voiceless and hope for the hopeless. You, too, can step up and be apart of fighting for this cause.
Pray .. Give ... Act ... there's something for everyone to do!
I'd like to especially thank those who sent in donations for Team Freedom. Thank you for your donations ... as I was running, I thought about all of the helpless women who would love to follow their dreams ... and YOU helped financially so lives could be saved in Jesus' name.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Second, throughout my training experience, the enemy did not want me to conquer this goal - it was mentally and physically exhausting and there were days that brought large amounts of tears, sweat and uncertainty. This was also a spiritual battle ... even when my body didn't want to cooperate, the Lord intervened and gave me the strength that was needed to meet the next goal (Phil 3:14). There was a God-moment during the race ... my verse throughout the training experience was
Phil. 4:13, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." Every time I felt my body wanting to give up during the race, the Lord brought encouragement right before my very eyes ... I saw at least 3-4 (different) tshirts that quoted Phil. 4:13 at each point I needed it most. I love God-moments - He never ceases to amaze me. He's always with us, always holding us, never giving up on His children. We just have to open up our eyes so we don't miss the "God-moments."
My Race Day Picture Diary
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| In anticipation of the big day, I layed everything out the night before ... 1:30 a.m. would come way too soon! |
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| The alarm sounded at 1:30 a.m. - even though I could never fall asleep, the Lord carried me through. The nerves were there, but dissapeared once we crossed that START line. |
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| Upon arriving at the race site, I've never seen so many port-a-pots ... they were in groups of 30-40 around every corner! This was my "God-smile" very early in the morning... not sure why it amazed me so much, but it made me laugh. |
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Excited! The Disney Princess Half Marathon started at Epcot, and we ran through Magic Kingdom, Disney, and back through Epcot.
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| I'm not much of a tutu or crown kinda-girl, but I've never seen so many in my entire life! Go girls! |
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After 13.1 miles - I crossed the finished line with a smile on my face (and of course, it helped when I spotted my sweet husband cheering me on)
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| For all you princesses out there ... you can achieve your dreams - trust in Him and never give up! |
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| 19,000 women (and some very brave men) gathered to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon. A breath-taking day. |
Thank you for your love, financial support, prayers - I'm now officially in love with the sport of running and it has been a great outlet me for. I'm so thankful for the support of family and of my husband, who is always cheering me on. I look forward to cheering him on in his upcoming Half Marathon.
My advice from this experience?
#1 - Trust God and stop giving into the mental games we play. Satan always attacks when we are the weakest. When I was most insecure, he tried to throw rocks at me. God was always there - cheering me on, giving me strength.
#2: Look for God-moments. Look for those "Phil 4:13" tshirts in your own life ... He always puts encouragement in our paths ... stop closing your eyes and looking to another path - Look to Christ!
#3: Stop Saying "I'll Never Do It." I've always been my own worst enemy. I tend to give up before even taking on a challenge because I fear failure and letting people down. STOP. Stop giving up and start following your dreams. If I can run 13.1 miles... you can do anything!
#4: Look for an outlet. We all need something that excites us, keeps us active, and gives us an outlet to do something we love. Running is that for me now. What yours? Find it. Do it. Enjoy it. Don't give up! Achieve it. When I crossed the finish line, I was already thinking of things to do differently in the anticipation and excitement for the next Half Marathon --- God gives us these little things to keep us going!
