Justice Run 23

 

Savoring the Improvements: Justice Run 2

This past weekend I completed my second Justice Run in Forth Worth.

After a rough start and a grueling finish (is there another kind?), I came in at nearly the same time as before. The morning started at 5:00 am. I woke up my brother and he woke up two of his kids, Bella and Christian. The 4 of us, and my mom, headed for the Panther Pavilion in downtown Fort Worth along the banks of the Trinity River. The marathon runs along the path following the river. It’s a 13.1 mile loop that marathoners have to run twice. The city was still under a downpour with no let up in sight. We sat under the event center canopy and waited for 7:00 am.

The race had been pushed back from the original start of 6:00 am due to heavy rainfall.

A quick look around told me those of us running numbered less than 20. The marathon doesn’t usually get as many participants anyway, but the weather clearly had an effect on the participant’s decision to show up. My brother got an alert shortly after. The organizers were pushing it back 2 hours to 9:00 am. They must have also realized it would still be dark till at least 8:00. Normally not a huge deal but with driving rain and deep puddles it could be treacherous.

We decided to go find a coffee shop and get out of the rain. We found one just a few minutes from the pavilion that would host the run. This one was on a major city block corner with impressive floor to ceiling windows facing the whole of the city. We were able to watch the weather get worse, as the morning light tried to peek through the darkness. The sun never made an appearance but the darkness relented a bit. At this point I thought they might cancel. When we went back to the pavilion a much larger crowd was there waiting to run.

The event was on after all.

I was having second thoughts about running in this miserable weather. But with all the others lining up and checking their watches I fell in line and prepped like the rest. I borrowed a hooded sweatshirt from my mom, mostly to keep the rain off my head. I didn’t bring a hat, so I had to deal with wearing it for the first half of the run. Once they shouted “GO!”, we hustled through the first few hundred feet jockeying for position. The puddles appeared shortly after that. We tried to skirt the ankle-deep water by running through the grass along the side. But when the mud threatens to hold your shoes in place, it’s best to just trot through like a hefty Clydesdale on your way to the barn. I should’ve said “carefully” trot. I noticed a few runners slipping on the mud underneath the water covering the path and took cautious steps.

Once you step in the water a few times you accept it and splash on. Your shoes won’t dry, but neither will they be full of water the whole day. It gets a little easier after that. I checked in on my pace and heart rate like I normally do. Not that it matters all that much, but I’ve never been able to keep a 10 minute pace beyond the halfway point. It always jumps up to 11 and then 12. I could run harder and keep myself at 10 but my energy level won’t allow it so late in the run. During training this isn’t a problem. My heart rate too was up in the 160s during the race, which is high for me. I like to stay just below 150.

I’ll need to do some research to figure out why my heart was thumping so quickly. I wasn’t running faster but for some reason, it was working harder. I’ve googled around since the race to get a sense of how it might have happened. Coffee is likely the culprit. I always drink one cup before a run but because of the delayed start, I had two. It’s hard to reconcile one extra cup of coffee as being the deciding factor, so let’s call it a contributor.

 If it seems like I obsess about these minor inputs, it’s because it takes a lot of work to get here. I’m still in the ‘just happy to finish’ portion of my ability. But eventually I’d like to get faster and start breaking some personal records. Along the way I hope to weed out bad habits and learn how to best prepare. The sense I get from those who’ve run a lot more than me, is that training is highly personal. What works for a similar runner won’t necessarily work for me. It’s a puzzle, a problem to be solved. I enjoy it. Mostly I like to savor the improvements, no matter how small, and be encouraged by the progress.    

The rain eventually dropped off around the 10 mile mark. The drizzle continued for most of the race. The last 4 miles or so were almost too much. I knew I’d finish at a slow clip, limping and scooting along. My knee was begging me to stop and my legs felt like I had bags of ice melt wrapped around them. Having done this before, I knew to just grit my teeth and lean forward until I passed under the bright archway with the glorious word “Finish” across the top. The pain really is temporary, but the story lasts forever.

So I’ll keep going… and thank God for His strength in my weakness.

We All Need Adventure

 

Grail Lore and Adventurism in the Human Psyche

My brother bought me a replica of the Grail Diary from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

The family met for breakfast at my favorite restaurant the other day. I had a birthday recently so the gift had a purpose. It came in a faux leather binder and the same wrapper that Henry sent to Indiana from prison in Germany. I’ve always loved the movie, not to mention grail lore. Literature is full of references to the grail. From early stories about its search and the Knights of the Round Table to the boys from Monty Python. Nelson Demille wrote a book years ago called Quest. In it, a trio of expats (2 Americans 1 Englishman) take up the search for the illusive cup of Christ. He wrote the book in 1975 originally, but increased the length and reissued the story in 2013.

I read the later version and loved it.

Artifacts for Ancients

What is it about the search for sacred artifacts from antiquity that excite the mind? For some it’s the ‘magic’ of the pieces themselves. The selling of antiques connected to the disciples got out of control in the middle ages. Supposed body parts of disciples and bones of saints were commonly sold. Churches knew better than most how early Christians might react to supposedly sacred objects. They would assume some otherworldly power imbued the object itself. The high price put on rare objects as well, the biggest ‘proof’ of their worthiness. A local traveling con man might do alright with this kind of scam, but for local church officials to do likewise was an abomination. John Calvin became critical of the ‘worship’ of such relics but the practice continued. 

But just because of lot of them are fake doesn’t mean they all are. The Shroud of Turin is probably the most famous relic. The search for ancient, hidden pieces of antiquity has a long history as well. Most are either grave robbers seeking fortune or academics, hoping to add credibility to their efforts. A few believe in the magic of the piece itself.

Prestige for Collectors

Indiana Jones is an academic with a passion for adventure. His “It belongs in a museum” ethic views relics as public goods to be shared. The treasure hunter types like Donovan only care about the prestige of holding such a rare piece. Actually, Donavan is both grave robber and magic potion seeker. The prestige he craves is eternal life and not just the cup. 

Grail lore represents something larger in the human psyche, the search for the unobtainable or nearly impossible. The language even seeps into our pop culture. Industries have ‘holy grail’ awards, titles to which incredible feats are ascribed. In Physics it’s a theory of everything. In body building it’s the “Mr. Olympia” championship. In horse racing it’s the triple crown. It’s become a euphemism for a life-long journey of searching for excellence.

But holy grail mythology is less about finding the actual cup and more about keeping that sense of adventure alive. It’s escapism of the best kind. Instead of dulling the pain of everyday life with drugs or alcohol, when we put our imagination to work we become fully alive. When imagination is sparked the quest for meaning outside of ourselves burns bright. We all need an outside passion requiring effort and resource. We’re creative people with interests beyond the here and now. This is how God created us after all.

Adventure for Everyone

Adventure isn’t just for kids. It’s often dangerous or risky, forcing you out of your comfort zone. But it doesn’t have to mean skydiving or cliff jumping. You don’t need to sail around the world in a dinghy. You can find adventure in a mission’s trip to a poor country or a tour of ancient Greek ruins in Athens. I’m mostly interested in the kind of adventure that sparks passion. This is where life change happens. Discovery is the difference. You discover what you’re made of, and how you respond to stress and hardship. You find out your weaknesses, strengths and aspects of your character you’d rather keep hidden.

My trip to China qualifies. I remember how excited I was to take on a challenge alone in a foreign country. Teaching English was the job that got me into the country; adventure kept me going while there. From food to friendships and embarrassing moments, it all became a time that I look back on with pride. Not because I accomplished some amazing feat or became a different person, but because I took a risk. The first few months were lonely and confusing. I didn’t understand the customs and couldn’t communicate without gestures. Eventually I took more chances, traveled to more places and discovered a more confident version of myself.

Conclusion

I assumed the spirit of adventurism had passed in my mid twenties. But after seeing the silly grail diary and remembering my excitement toward travel, I feel the old passions rising up again. Is it just a fleeting sense of escapism or a recalled memory of a time when everything was possible? Maybe it’s a genuine sense that the passion of international affairs I always hoped to pursue is still alive and well. Maybe I should start my own diary.

“May He who illuminated this, illuminate me.” Dr. Henry Jones

Training with Faith: The Natural and Unnatural

Make it Make Sense

Why do I like to run?

 It’s not a straightforward answer but I’ve narrowed it down to a simple phrase, “It makes sense”. Put in work, get results. You can lie to others about effort but never yourself. You can tell your friends you “went ham” today. You can fill people in on your routine when they ask, or share what you’ve learned about stretching, breathing, eating. Nothing tells the tale like success, or lack of it. Your body knows.

This probably seems a little obvious. Fitness grows through consistency.

 Lower heart rates, stronger legs and low BMI are all rewards of a solid routine. It’s why people run, have always run. Running is good for you. That’s maybe the worst kept secret in human physiology. But it makes sense when other things in life don’t.

Faith for instance, doesn’t make sense naturally. It doesn’t respond to the physical laws of stress and strength. It requires less of you, not more.

Active Faith

A life of faith is trying. “Without faith it’s impossible to please God” (Hebrews 11:6). That’s a principle we learn to operate from. But learning how to believe in the unseen is uncomfortable. I hear people say it’s like a muscle that you have to work. But faith isn’t like a muscle because there is no immediate feedback. You know when you’ve worked your biceps. Your arms become heavy and unusable for a short time. The soreness you feel when lifting a cup of coffee (Yes, donuts too) is directly related to muscle fatigue. But that soreness pays you back with strength. Faith takes longer and stays hidden, but it does come with benefits eventually.

Active faith works like a currency. It’s God’s medium of exchange in spiritual matters. But its value isn’t known to everyone, precisely because it’s not a physical commodity. There is no feedback when you exercise, no timeline for success.

It’s an exercise many of us aren’t up to. It’s ethereal, concerned with trust and patience not sweat and effort. You can’t manipulate it like a running pace. You can’t speed it up when it looks like rain is on the way. You can’t push it off till a more amenable time. Faith changes you. You don’t change it. It’s a currency with a sharp distinction between rich and poor.

Measurable Faith

You shouldn't only focus on what makes sense in life. But some of us are built differently. We’d rather a quiet run than a raucous party, an early morning to a late night. I don’t think runners are automatically introverts but I wouldn’t be surprised either. Running makes sense because we can measure it. Whether you like to use a watch to track your miles or just a look at the clock, we understand what improvement looks like. Beliefs aren’t measurable in the same way. We despise things we can’t measure. We reject ill-gotten. You shouldn’t get what you didn’t earn.

Faith as well, lacks a certain satisfaction that comes from a charted improvement. Humans learn to chart and measure at an early age.

How many had a growth chart on the wall to measure height? You couldn’t ride the roller coasters at Six Flags without surpassing a specific mark. Elementary teachers have grade charts posted at the front of the room. Usually notated with stars or stickers for excellent work. Students know who the achievers are. Maybe this has changed. We live in an increasingly sensitive ‘nanny state’ reality. Success is punished or downgraded at the expense of feelings too often. But even held down, excellence won’t be ignored forever. It keeps score and reaches new heights.

Currency of Faith

A life rooted in faith demands thinking about life counterintuitively. You don’t get to keep score here. You can’t exchange your dollars (You wouldn’t get much anyway). Excellence is rewarded but you can’t take credit. That’s enough for a lot of people to check out. How after all can I track my progress? What does ‘success’ look like?

If it’s a currency how do I get wealthy?

Here’s how it works. Living by faith in God is to give your desires, achievements and successes back, let God build something in you. You must trade your efforts and achievements for a peace of mind, that He knows better than you. It’s giving back your talents in exchange for a better reality and trusting in that trade off. It’s the opposite of running. Running takes the ability God gave you and improves it; Faith takes your ability to God and lets Him build His vision in you. The trust that comes from that difficult tradeoff is faith. He shows you a little, then he shows you a lot.

“Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.” (Hebrews 11:1)

Conclusion

 It takes time and patience. You don’t get to check off a box or step on a scale, but He’s building a lasting kingdom in you. The trade off is the currency. The more you let you go in faith, the richer you get. It will ultimately make sense. 

  

Biden Administration Funding Attack From Hamas

 

Israel At War Again: Biden's Pro Iran Messaging

Hamas attacked Israel yesterday.

 I looked at my phone after my morning run to see my Dad’s text “Pray for Israel”. The news was still a mystery to me. I jumped on Telegram and caught up with some of the carnage unfolding. It’s still very new and unfolding; the details aren’t completely known. It appears hundreds are dead in the south around the country. Hamas launched a massive rocket attack that overwhelmed the Iron Dome missile defense system protecting its beleaguered country.

It's the fiftieth anniversary of Yom Kippur. Naturally, the scum in Gaza waited until then to build up weapons and attack. Once the defense system was down they burst through the border wall and started slaughtering Jews. Some of the footage is awful. I don’t like watching people get beat up and shot like that. I skimmed most of the posts. For the videos with a warning shield I avoid clicking on it. When I see civilians, especially women, being brutalized I have to look away. Hamas is also taking hostages. They started murdering civilians at a Burning Man style music festival.

 Israel is known for its spot on intelligence and historically preempting attacks on neighbor states like in Egypt (1967). The intelligence failed miserably this time. They’re always so good at preventing these large-scale incursions, one wonders what happened.

I read some early posts from Jack Posobiec about Joe Biden releasing $6 billion dollars of sanctioned money to the Ayatollahs in Iran. The Biden administration wanted to restart this deal with the Iranians ever since Trump put the kibosh on it. President Trump thought the deal would make the Iranians likely to spread that money around to their terrorists’ proxies in Gaza and Lebanon. What a crazy notion right? The Iranian regime, awash with money, might  make Israel less safe. That’s exactly what happened. The Biden regime is no friend to Israel. In the Middle East there are three powers competing for control, Israel, the Sunni states and the Shia states.

Saudi Arabia represents the biggest Sunni state, Iran the Shia power. Ever since Trump’s mid-east deal with a handful of Sunni states (Bahrain, UAE) and Israel, relations have normalized. Just the recognition of the Jewish state was major achievement. But Iran is the rival to Saudi Arabia and the Sunni Muslim powers. They fund terrorism through Hamas. This latest attack is very coordinated and suggests a lot of time and training went into it. The worst Hamas does, normally, is launch a few rockets that get intercepted by the defense system. This time is different. It looks like Netanyahu and the IDF get caught sleeping. That’s just unbelievable to say but it doesn’t make sense otherwise.

It used to be that the American president didn’t affect the relationship between the US and Israel all that much. Most of them tried to broker some kind of deal with the Palestinian leadership but none had lasting success. Trump was the first to treat the Jewish state like and ally with the Abraham Accords. Everyone else took the claims of the Palestinians at face value and tried to negotiate in good faith. That was always a suckers play. Neither the PLO nor Hamas wanted to live in peace. They only ever bought time until the next attack. I don’t think the Biden administration cared about Israel at all. They knew Iran would likely try to attack them, and still they released the funds. Our ally in the Middle East is paying a heavy price for the crooked American government.

I clicked on Fox’s Sunday morning show with Shannon Bream today. The White House trotted out some lackey to explain that ‘actually the money the Iranians will receive hasn’t been spent yet’. And my favorite part of the interview was when he said that they are permitted from using any of the funds for anything other than aid (LOL). These dopey officials are running the country, God help us! That’s like saying people getting food stamps aren’t allowed to use them for booze and cigarettes. As if they won’t use their earnings for booze and cigarettes and the food stamps for groceries. How stupid do they think we are. Shannon Bream said as much, implying that the Iranians might use the newly acquired money to cover their debt to the weapons manufacturers. The spokesman (can’t remember his name) was not having it.

That tells me that the Biden people know exactly how awful this looks. Donald Trump suggested this gift to Iran would hurt Israel, after the deal went down a month ago. Trump’s tweeting turns out to be a genius move most of the time. Sure, there is the occasional nasty bit about “horseface” Stormy Daniels. Mostly though, he puts attention where the media refuses to go. Then they have to cover it because it’s news. 

I don’t want to be negative here, but I think this incursion by Hamas reverberates around the globe. Already, two Jewish vacationers in Egypt were shot to death by a police officer. The Taliban is looking to join in the fight on the Holy Land. There is a good chance we see terrorism here in America as well. How many millions of "refugees" have poured in across the southern border? These Islamists don’t see this as a purely related to Israel. It’s a global jihad and there a lot of infidels to deal with.

Pray for the peace of Jerusalem.

 

 

Moving on From Mistakes

Learn How to Fix Mistakes and Move On

What’s the best way to respond to a mistake while everyone waits with bated breath to hear your excuse? Depending on your personality, diffuse the situation and move forward as quickly as possible.

I’m a guilty by nature type.

Work is the best example of this. If a customer calls and says they never got something they paid for, I usually assume I forgot to order it. But that’s rarely the case. I make my share of mistakes, but I’ve gotten better about noticing the details that normally lead to them. I’ll investigate the issue and find a perfectly reasonable explanation. Either the customer didn’t pay, or they ordered something entirely different. Sometimes the item in question isn’t even within my purview. Another employee handled it and didn’t tell me. Customers miss our follow up phone calls frequently as well.   

Why then do I so often assume the worst about me?

My best guess, I’m trying to soften the blow if it turns out to be my mistake. I’m not sure if everyone gets as humiliated as me when they make a mistake. Those boneheaded ones are the worst too. You know you messed up so bad and so obvious, there isn’t any way around it. Incompetence stares you in the face and laughs, Nelson Muntz like at your flailing, incoherent explanations. People who hate being the center of attention, REALLY HATE being the center of attention. That’s me by the way. When you’re screw ups are on display it heightens that nervous energy to a fever pitch.

 Being the main attraction is uncomfortable when being acknowledged for helpful positive feats. Say, rescuing children from an apartment fire set by a careless smoker who dozed off. Your cringe responses are at least understandable.

“Umm…Well… you know…just doing my duty” you say bashfully after coughing the smoke out of your lungs. “Anyone would have done the same.” You can even add something about the children being our future or something to give your banal comments a little more heft. But you’re much happier when the questions cease. You can rest easy when inquiries about your heroic efforts abate. Being asked about your failures however forces twitchy, irritable responses. That’s on the mild side. On the other end of the axis is extreme prejudice. It comes in two forms, explosive and distant. Here it depends on the personality of the accused.

Explosive responses should come with red lights flashing and Defcon 5 alarms squawking with abandon. It’s about to get loud. It’s characterized by notes of self righteousness and a ‘how dare you’ tinged bitterness. Speeches will be made. Speeches about the level of hard work and lack of recognition. Speeches directed toward the accuser for their tone, lack of respect or negativity. At this point it’s a shout fest and regret begins to show up like a sun burn after a day at the lake. It’s embarrassing to lose it in such a public way. How many road rage incidents have you witnessed while driving past and thinking “How did it get that far?”

But when you get caught in an obvious screw up you can either look like a puppy who’s been whipped for peeing on the floor, or a grumpy old Cocker spaniel that snapped at the neighbor. Neither is good. In the first case you’re weak, in the second you’re not worth the trouble. In the case of a distant response to a blatant failing, you look uncaring. People might get the impression that maybe you did it on purpose. Or at the very least, you’d rather be doing anything else than working. Your cold responses give off a ‘so what if I did?’ vibe. Those that know you, know it’s a ruse. It irritates you more than most realize, but the low key “whatever’s” and shrugs obscure the boiling energy inside.

 In some cases, playing it off like you don’t care is the safest way to go. If you don’t do well operating at a high temperature, it’s for the best. Anger, especially the ‘righteous’ kind, can poison working relationships for a long time. Best to bite your tongue and if necessary, play it cool. Fix the problem later, when the internal caldron isn’t about to erupt. Say “I messed up” and move on. Most people are forgiving if you give them a straightforward, no excuses apology. It’s humiliating I know.

 If you hate being at the center find a way to manage it. Walk into another room and pretend to look for something. The more stressful situations you’re in the better you learn to manage them. Like anything, practice makes perfect. Remember, the explosive scorched earth response is the hardest to come back from. It’s like a train derailment. The wreckage can stretch for miles. You have to work with these people, so take a deep breath and settle your scores later.

Be safe out there.