God morning my brothers and sisters,
Ironically, I am writing this as I am in the closing stages of a 11-day bout of pneumonia. So glad to be at this point…and hoping you have been in a better place than I have been. But I am blessed as I hope you are today and into the weekend.
Now, When I was in great shape and an athlete of multiple sports, running a single mile was one of the hardest and most painful parts of any training I had to do. I hated running, so the idea of running a marathon seemed crazy. And like all things, I play to win but in marathons, winning wasn’t even my goal, just finishing within 4 hours was my dream. On my 5th marathon, I achieved it. The key was focusing on the little things—trusting in coaches and other runners, doing slow runs, hill runs, speed drills, rest, the right diet, and tempo runs. Not just running long miles every day. These small, consistent efforts made all the difference.
You see, after my heart attack in 2008, at the age of 46, I was told I would never do the things I once took for granted. I was told that walking will be my exercise from this point on. Determined to prove them wrong, I started by walking, then jogging, and eventually running. The athlete in me wanted more and the beast of running events would be to run a marathon. The thought of running a marathon seemed impossible, but to stay motivated, I thought I would try for it. Step by step, I made it happen.
This journey reminds me of a ship steered by a small rudder. Our Friday Fly-by word of the week captures this perfectly, it comes from James 3:4, and it says, 'Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go.' The little rudder steering a big ship, do you have a 'big ship' in your thoughts but even more so, do you have your rudder in place?
Just like the small rudder steers a large ship, the small, consistent efforts in life steer us towards big achievements. Every step I took after my heart attack, no matter how small, led me to where I am today—running marathons, eleven of them and counting and living a healthier life.
In all things in life, remember that big goals and aspirations are achievable through faith and attention to the little things. Trust in God's plan, and let your small, faithful actions guide you towards your dreams. You can do this! Hope this encourages you today. Reach out if I can ever be of further help to you. Love you all and as always, Be blessed and go be a blessing! Have a great weekend!
For more information or to inquire about our holistic coaching services, reach out to:
J.A. Dava, Co-founder, Sr. Coach at Jdava@latreiacoaching.com/ 614-638-9397, or
Paul Waldrop, Co-founder, Sr. Coach at pwaldrop@latreiacoaching.com/ 404-784-3771.
Comments