Runners High
August 12th, 2010 § Leave a Comment
I’ve always hated running. But, on the other hand, I love playing sports, especially soccer. Which by the nature of the sport requires a considerable amount of running, but I hate running for the sake of running. Nonetheless, a couple of years ago, I started running a few times a week to try to get into shape. To be perfectly honest, it has been one of the hardest things I have ever had to do, mostly because of the mental requirements. It seems so counterintuitive, but running is mostly a mental sport requiring you to fight the natural urges of your body to stop running from the pain… yes, PAIN!!! My knees, shins, feet, lungs, everything. So why do I do it? Because one day, while I was training for a half-marathon I experienced it… the mythical runners-high. Runners-high is this calm that comes over your body that makes you feel like you can run forever. When it happened the first time, I didn’t even realize it. My running partner had to point it out to me. I was no longer winded and had gotten into a comfortable pace and groove.
Believe it or not, it’s the same feeling I get when I am truly in the presence of God. What is it that lets me feel this way? It is knowing that because of Jesus and through the Holy Spirit I can be in the presence of God and know that he is there with me. In John 14:6-7 the passage explains why this is possible… 6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know him and have seen him.”