Luke 18 and God's Promise to Avenge Speedily

 

Bearing Up and Avenging Speedily

Luke 18 starts out with a parable. It’s a lesson about God’s faithfulness to those who seek justice. It begins, a godless judge becomes tired of a widow approaching him about her adversary and demanding justice. He reasons to himself that if he doesn’t help her, she will bother him about it all the time. He decides to help her, purely due to self-interest.

The Trial

 “Then the Lord said, ‘Hear what the unjust judge said. And shall God not avenge His own elect who cry out day and night to Him, though He bears long with them? I tell you that He will avenge them speedily, Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?’” (verse 6-8)

There seems to be a discrepancy between God bearing long with us and avenging “speedily”. Those look to be opposites. A legal battle that drags on for years cannot be thought of as a speedy verdict. Even with the ruling in your favor. The agony and cost of a protracted fight is too much for a lot of people. Justice must be speedy and inexpensive or it’s not really justice.

 I’ve been following the Mark Steyn defamation suit that concluded two weeks ago. Sued by the despicable Michael Mann, for writing a blog post that called him a fraud. Much of the scientific community has complained about his sloppy research methods. This being a litigious country though, Mann’s team took the case to Washington DC and won a $1 million. He won because the jury didn’t like right wing journalists like Steyn criticizing the “science” community. Mann wasn’t harmed in any way. The jury agreed with that. The award from the court was punitive and designed to chill free speech going forward. The suit began in 2012 and recently concluded, in 2024.

 It’d difficult to find the most egregious aspect of this case, but the sheer length and cost put Mann v Steyn into the duplicitous category.

The Faithfulness

In God’s legal framework His people are assured of justice. Often it takes a while to manifest in our lives. It can take years, even decades to be realized. So why does Jesus use the word “speedily” when nothing about victory feels quick? I think it has to do with the official record and not the reality of the ongoing situation. In heaven our case is won but on earth, we stand on faith. It’s why He wraps up the parable by mentioning faith. In other words, is there enough faith to believe for victory when the trial is so daunting? But faith is built through trying times. Without a season of waiting on the Lord we would never renew our strength (Isaiah 40:31).

No one needs strength like fighters.

But we don’t wait on the Lord like a judge. He isn’t deciding whether or not to rule in our favor. Just prayers from the Saints cause God to move on our behalf. As Christians we are heirs to the promise and entitled to good gifts like healing, prosperity and peace. He already ruled in our favor when Christ went to the cross and rose on the third day. Faith in our natural trial is where we get tripped up. He is working behind the scenes to correct unjust events. But Jesus reminds us of His presence in our weakness. The struggle to wait is often more than we can handle however. It’s why he reminds us that he “bears long” with us.

The Victory

If this doesn’t create a picture in your mind of a loving father holding his son or daughter while they cry, I don’t know what will. I had asthma as a young boy. I remember struggling to catch my breath after running around on a cold winter day. This wasn’t always the trigger but the symptoms were the same, wheezing and shortness of breath. Even walking from my bedroom to the bathroom was a struggle. My parents were always nearby enduring the long days when I hardly moved. There was nothing to do but wait. We all had some long nights. They believed for my healing before I felt better. I didn’t struggle in later years like I did as a child. Occasionally the humidity would cause me to go into a wheezing episode, but I never doubted God’s faithfulness. I had been through the trial with my parents. I’d seen their comfort and reassurance.

The trials are painful and often long. But God shows up as a comforter and reminds us of His verdict on our behalf.

The challenge for us is to build faith in the struggle, knowing that our Heavenly Father is working when it doesn’t feel like it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Routines Are A Super Power

 

Routines: The Pushy Parent You Desperately Need

I’ve been pondering the value of routine and why it’s the closest thing to a superpower that I’ll ever have. 

I’m not studying tonight. Most nights through the week I spend at least an hour, usually two, going over the ISSA (International Sports Science Association) textbook. I either make notes in the study guide or read a new section. It feels less daunting than it did when I first opened the package in the mail. Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a lot to learn. But I’ve got a routine going. That’s the primary piece of success to me. Even exercise works this way. Progress is impossible if you keep changing your routine and miss big chunks of the week. When you make yourself do the same thing, day after day, it’s not as difficult. Besides I’m learning a lot about the body and nutrition. It’s interesting. 

Choices 

My writing has suffered a little. I’m not able to compose as much. But it’s a trade off I need right now. I expect that I’ll get certified as a trainer and make some extra money after I take the test. Right now I need to get the material in my head.

I ran with my group last night along the riverfront. This is becoming a new Thursday night routine that’s difficult because it’s right after work. It’s frustrating that I haven’t improved my speed any significant margin. I can run fast but I can’t carry on a conversation at the quicker pace. That’s a part of it. You need to be able to run and talk without getting out of breath. I can’t do that for very long. 

I hang in there but I don’t say much. I probably worry too much about this stuff. I’m fortunate to be able to run at all. My health is good and eat better than ever. There is a long way to go on the diet side of things. But I’ve cut down significantly on fast food and sugar. Sugar still needs to be an occasional thing and not a daily intake. Thankfully ice cream doesn’t have sugar or I’d be in real trouble (LOL).

Decisions

As for writing, the reason I’m struggling is that I don’t hardly do anything. My days are boring. What I mean is, I don’t explore enough. I attend the usual service on Saturday night at church. My group runs on Saturday morning and Thursday night. I hit the gym on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. I eat breakfast with my mom on Sunday morning. Sunday afternoon is a short walk with a podcast. I talk to my cousin and Sunday night and the week begins anew.

 Already mentioned is my schedule for studying. I’m a creature of habit, but that doesn’t lend itself well to writing. 

Unless I want to blog about the news all day like Ace of Spades. He probably doesn’t make that much money but he’s found a niche. Could I do that even with a decent paycheck? For a while, yes, but I think the stream of bad news would depress me after a while. My routine keeps me going while also keeping me from busting out. Without some level of consistency, I’m not sure I would be effective at anything. Whenever I encounter a new wrinkle in my schedule, like this personal training course, I get to work establishing a routine. I’m sure even as a traveling salesman I’d do the same thing. Check into the hotel, find a place to eat and go over emails. Then wake up early and run or weight lift weights, take a shower and start meeting with my contacts for the day. I’d repeat some form of this every time I traveled. 

Habits

Does that make me unique? I don’t think so. The uniqueness might be in the level of detail on the schedule. Some are happy to play with a loose framework. Others need an hour by hour breakdown. For me, it comes down to NOT having to decide what to do. The trick with routines is taking away as many chances to say NO as possible. The more detail there is, the less chance there is to waste time. It’s why signing up for running clubs or group classes at the gym works better than just agreeing with that internal (annoying) voice that pesters you about exercise. Telling yourself things like “I should really work out more” is worthless. When you pay for it, or if it’s on a schedule you’re more likely to go. This isn’t something I looked up so I may be on thin ice here. It’s possible there is no difference but I doubt it. Additionally, having a lead role in a group is a tighter bind to that function. If you’re the one who fills the water jugs, for instance, or leads the 9 minute pace group you won’t miss.  

I’ve seen this in my own life whether volunteering at church or giving people rides to a party. These connections and responsibilities make it more likely I’ll show up. That’s half of it after all. Tight routines actually take away the ‘stay or go’ decisions that are much harder to make early in the morning. Decisions are stressful; planning is easy. Remember when your mom woke you up for school? How many times did you want to go back to sleep? The difference was you didn’t have a choice. Routine removes choice. It’s a pushy parent when you desperately need one. 

Conclusion

You can still build in off time as a reward. That’s what I’m calling tonight, my off night. Spaghetti and sausage with some garlic bread is on the menu. Friday is once again becoming a consistent pasta night for me. Another day another routine. 

Border Battle: When Will They Learn?

 

Lankford's Bill on Border Security is DOA: No New Legislation

This recent bill from James Lankford was a dud. 

Officially touted as an “Immigration Bill” it’s barely out of committee and everyone is dumping on it. The game is up on border security as an issue for most Americans. They won’t sneak a bill through that involves any aspect of immigration, worker visas or border security without a fight. We've learned to say Hell No! My memory on border security goes back to George W Bush. That was less than 20 years ago. Bush was largely popular with the base, but he tried to sign a bill into law that provided green cards, visas and work permits to illegal aliens. Those already in the country, in other words, were to be given a free pass. There may have been a provision requiring an English language test or something. If memory serves, that was John McCain’s contribution to the agreement.

For all the fussing around on the margins, the legislation was a giveaway to the corporate class. We call them the donor class now, same group. These are the industries that benefit from cheap labor (hospitality, agriculture, construction) and need a porous border. It’s basically their idea. But they understand the outcry over illegal immigration from regular Americans. They want an open border but have to pretend to be interested in security.

 It’s all theater though and we all know it.

I think we started to figure it out in the early 00s. The details of the bills don’t matter. We get caught up on the dizzying numbers and statistics the legislators trot out on cable news shows. It all sounds very important and serious. “The Congressional Budget Office scored it favorably doncha know”. The theater is in the horse trading. How many green cards, which illegals can apply for citizenship and how long after the work permit. The asylum process is a joke too. It’s meant to be for people escaping persecution, not looking for work.

Even the focus on migrants from Central and South America seems a little dated. Know we have Chinese men coming in organized packs from the Mexico side. What? Yup the details are fuzzy. Why are they walking in from the South with the tide of South Americans? No one knows. No one cares. The border isn’t just about people looking for work. It’s human trafficking, drug trafficking, weapons trafficking and who knows what else.

It doesn’t matter what’s agreed to in the eventual bill. The ones responsible for closing the border didn’t follow the law before, why should they now? As if a new bill with just the right amount of extra security agents or quotas on illegals (puh lease!) will consist of the perfect combination of items to make a difference. We (Americans) usually fall for this. Not this time. If you think about what’s being asked here, it should upset you that we need a bill at all. What if the number of drunk driving accidents suddenly jumped. I don’t mean 10 percent either. What about one hundred percent? Not only that, but it had been climbing every year for the past 30 years. In the last 4 years It shot up 200 percent. Keep in mind, it’s illegal to drink and drive. But the police were overwhelmed. Citizens were being killed in record numbers.

The problem increases because the authorities aren’t enforcing the laws. Suddenly it’s out of control. The crime is so bad it might cause instability. I guess you could say liquor stores and bars benefit when drinking is up, but everyone else gets short changed. The alcohol companies would have every interest to get a bill on the books that appeared to fix the problem, but really just encourages everyone to look the other way. In other words, the bill would have no real accountability. They’d trot out their paid representatives to tell us how amazing and bipartisan it is. After it passed we’d quit talking about it for a decade or so. What looked like a fix is nothing more than a show.

This is the game on immigration. The United States doesn’t need a new law to close the border. Build a wall, put up concertina wire, hire more border patrol. Start deporting again. It’s a privilege to live in a country as a citizen. Most importantly, stop drawing up new legislation. It’s a recipe for additional pork spending that has nothing do with the border.

There should be room for an organized method that doesn’t abuse the asylum process. The border is open right now because powerful groups want to keep it that way. Immigration gets talked about as if it’s an automatic right for individuals. Every country has a duty to its citizens to regulate the border. We’ve had periods in this country where immigration was high and times when it was low. The Immigration Act of 1924 put quotas in place. This followed a massive wave of immigration from the early 1900s. We used to believe in assimilation; today it’s a bad word. But any country should argue for preserving its culture. Without it you don’t have a country. It’s the same for a border.

I didn’t vote for Lankford in this last election because I thought he was naive. I don’t know if he’ll recover from this last embarrassment. We would like a border, enforcement of laws and minimal legislation.   

A Failure of Christian Leadership: Weakness of Belief

 

God is Great: Islam is a Menace

How mad should I be?

It’s a result of too much news exposure I’m sure, but I struggle with anger at the state of the world. A lot of the news is meant to ramp up anger, outrage and anxiety about the future. But even viewed through the lens of Christianity, I wonder how much of my anger is righteous and how much is reactionary?

The Offense 

I guess I’m disappointed that more people aren’t fired up about the lack of respect for sacred spaces. I watched a video of a Muslim man walk into a church (Catholic or protestant) I’m not sure. He asks the priest (or bishop) if he could spread out his rug and pray. This all happens in French. I’m guessing at the translation. The minister acknowledges him with a nod and moves on with the ceremony. The Muslim man sets up his rug toward the East and kneels, in the middle of the service.

Islam is not a religion of peace and it never has been. This scandalous lie gained oxygen during the Bush administration because of the War on Terror. Whatever you think about the war in Afghanistan and Iraq, the lie served a purpose. The US government didn’t want the Islamic world thinking we were at war with their religion. Can you find Mosques that preach peace? I’m sure. We have churches all over the country that barely crack the Bible, why wouldn’t the same be said for Western Muslims? When it has the numbers, it takes over every part of civil society. This includes daily prayers too. How many formally Christian cities in Europe and America have daily calls to prayer (adhan) that ring out through the city? I don’t mean within the walls of the mosques either.

The Future

 Minneapolis and Dearborn are two cities without any qualms about bothering their non-Muslim, American citizens who have to hear it 5 times a day.  

Islam is a fanatical religion. It doesn’t want to exist with Christianity. It wants to conquer it. It’s an ‘apostate’ religion as far as Islam is concerned. These milquetoast pastors have no fear of the Lord. I can’t imagine there is much they would protest. These are men without chests to borrow a C.S Lewis phrase. How mad should I be? To see an obvious disregard for the God of Heaven, from both Christians and Muslims, raises my blood pressure. Are followers of Islam welcome in a Christian Church? Absolutely. We are all sinners and need a savior. No one in the rows is more holy than another. But everyone needs to recognize when someone is blaspheming the Lord. This is warfare of the spiritual kind. This faux Christian tolerance has to go.

The Conflict

I also recognize that I have a tendency to run pretty hot. But I’d rather be corrected for acting too rashly than to be corrected for indifference. Righteous anger, rightly directed, brings about a change in hearts and minds. It’s impossible for me to see this affront to Christ and the church as a shot across the bow. I can’t understand why other Christians don’t. Tolerance is not a Christian virtue, love and peace are. Tolerance isn’t a positive or negative characteristic. It’s wholly dependent on the situation. I don’t see a conflict, for instance, between escorting the man with the prayer rug outside and telling him about Jesus. We shouldn’t tolerate abuses in the Lord’s house, any more than we tolerate attacks on our families. The Church is a kind of family.

James 1:19 “…let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”

Is this a “wrath of man” kind of situation, or is this the Godly kind of anger? The Christian walk often feels like balancing on a tightrope. Overreactions can harm your influence with non-Christians. James warns us of this by emphasizing our slowness toward anger. He doesn’t say don’t get angry; his admonition is to the hotheads. I don’t spend a lot of time upset, but when it comes to our Christian family (the community of believers) we need to be more assertive against attacks.

Conclusion

The danger here is that an ‘Us vs Them’ attitude sets in and get reinforced among believers. We should seek peace with everyone around us, but not at the expense of disrespecting the Lord’s house.  Equally worrying is a passive, do what you like, posture from Christian leaders.

There is a desperate need in today’s tense environment to throw down a marker against a clear enemy. Yes, Satan is the enemy and not people. But the church needs to see its leader defend the house, to revere the name of God. Christianity is dying because it’s largely useless in practice. For many, it’s a cultural relic of superstition that animates much of the last century. The Church will lose the mandate from God to be His representative on earth. Islam’s goal is to dominate every space in society. The Church has the spiritual authority to speak to the darkness and command it to go. That’s true of any attack against God and His people. Let's do Better Christians.

Comfort is an Old Tattered Hoodie

 

Never Give Up: The Illini Hoodie That Keeps Going

I wear this hooded sweatshirt around the house that should have been tossed long ago. It’s the perfect weight for winter indoors. The fit is just right as well. I’ve owned more hooded sweatshirts than most people. Work at a sporting goods store and you’ll stock up on the fleece. Either by buying new pieces or taking them off the sample rack. This one however, has been in my possession since before I started working there. It’s a navy cotton fleece with a full zip in the front like a jacket. I’ve come to loathe the pullovers. They mess up my hair when I take them off.

Too vain? Maybe

Show & Tell

It's not really blue anymore. It’s been washed and dried so many times the color is closer to sun bleached navy, if that’s a thing. Threadbare and flecked with white paint, from the time I repainted the utility room, it’s still recognizable as some version of dark blue. Across the front is a screen printed, full chest “University of Illinois” Illini fan logo in orange.

When I moved here to Tulsa I brought clothes with me. Some of them were likely Illini fan gear and a lot of Chicago Bears stuff. But nearly all of it is gone now, too worn or out of style to keep around. But this hoodie has some power over me. It’s strictly house bound though. I won’t even work out in the yard with it, lest the neighbors assume a homeless man has wandered onto to my property.

‘Waisting’ Away

It's too thin to wear outside anyway. It didn’t used to be, but the threads are visible through the thin layer of cotton that hasn’t completely dissolved yet.  Amazingly the zipper still works. That’s an engineering marvel in itself. I’ve had coat zippers where the teeth stopped grabbing after just a season. No one fixes zippers. They toss it and look for a new one. It’s wasteful of course but who knows where to get a zipper? And how much does that cost? Doubtful it’s much less than a new coat at a discount store. You can get a winter coat at Costco for $20. Is it nice? No but you’ll break the zipper anyway. My sweatshirt zipper still has that smooth action too. Probably because I don’t wear it outside, the teeth don’t get gunked up with dirt and grass from the yard.

The elastic around the waist isn’t holding up as well. But I likely bought it when I was under 190 lbs, then over 220 and then back under 200 again. No matter my size it’s always been my favorite piece. When you get a sweatshirt, or tee or pair of pants, that fit right you’re loathe to give them up. Even after their shelf life (hanger life?) their comfort wins out over their appearance. At least for one or two items in life, because you don’t need to save everything.

Hoodie Phases

There are 3 distinct phases in the life of a hoodie. The first is when it’s new. Maybe you opened it on your birthday, maybe you found it on a discount rack at JC Penny. In either case, you wore it to the mall because it looked nice. You made sure take pictures in it and slap them on Facebook. People asked where you got it. Depending on how much you wore it, it faded after a while. Suddenly it’s a home piece, or a loaner for a brother for your turkey bowl game on Thanksgiving. This is phase 2, it’s become a second choice. Used for barbeques and chilly nights spent smoking cigars on the porch.

These are the twilight years in the life of a hoodie—not putting in a full day but enjoying a few hours of usefulness.

Not all make it phase 3. Phase 2 should be the end of the line. Some just refuse to quit. Threads come loose and spread apart, resembling tennis racket strings. Polyester fabrics peel into tiny balls and spandex loses elasticity. Fabric color washes out and gets replaced with oil, paint, burrito grease and whatever else makes a permanent stain. Wives usually throw out hoodies with time still on the clock, just because of a few superficial rips. Or because their husband refuses to retire his favorite piece.

 My Illini hood is firmly in phase 3. I don’t have a wife to toss it out but it’s clearly too ugly to leave the house. I can figure that much out on my own.

Comfort Wins

Comfort is a simple concept.

 It’s the feeling of a particular item and the lack of choice that accompanies it.

 Got that? Lack of choice can be a benefit. The comfort is in not having to stress over the choice. Does it match my pants? Is it the right piece for the event? Will I get too hot and have to remove it? all relate to choosing clothes and going out in public.  A comfortable sweatshirt is an old one. It’s old because you kept it around a long time, you liked the feel of fabric. But it’s also a first choice for hanging lazily around the house. It’s an easy comfortable decision, and one you make every time.

Everyone needs an old hoodie.

 

 

 

Thoughts On Job Part 2

 Why Ask Why: Job's Trials and God's Sovereignty

The Bible isn’t just one book, it’s a historical novel mixed with tragedy and tons of drama. It’s violent but rooted in peace, heartbreaking but hopeful. It’s advice, poetry and a record of the past. It’s a ‘living’ document because it’s inspired by God, not because the lessons can be revised for a modern audience. The story of God’s creation and love for humanity is present from the beginning. It’s the common thread that runs from Old Testament to New, from the law to grace.

Trials of Job

The book of Job is a bit of a hobbyhorse for me. Like a puzzle, you can only see it when all the pieces fit together. Half the book is bad advice from his friends. You can’t cut and paste verses from Job without understanding the whole text. It reads like a series of essays from Job’s circle of friends which seem correct at first. You have to read to the end to find out what God says about Job’s council. There’s a great lesson in that as well. Does the advice from friends or family echo the scripture? Do they have your best interest at heart?

Job is different from the New Testament and even much of the Old. Normally we say the Old Testament is concerned with the law, and the New Testament is concerned with grace. But Job is written before the law. God revealed Himself to us in nature. “His invisible attributes are clearly seen being understood by the things that are made.” (Romans 1:20) Their frame of reference for God was different. In Moses day they referred to the law as their guiding principle. In the New Testament it’s Christ, as a fulfillment of the law. In Job’s day they reasoned among themselves.

Job’s wife and friends (except for Elihu) are full of bad advice. They believe Job sinned, and is therefore responsible for his calamity. But their intuition on human nature isn’t wrong. Their understanding of God’s sovereignty isn’t wrong either. They correctly position God as judge and jury in the affairs of humanity. Unlike modern man, their fear of the Lord drives their instincts.

Wise Council?

Zophar, for instance, tells Job “Do you not know this of old, since man was placed on earth, that the triumphing of the wicked is short, and the joy of the hypocrite is but for a moment?” (chapter 20:4-5) Actually that’s good advice. It’s biblical too. The problem is, it’s applied to Job. He isn’t responsible for the trials. God lays that out in the first chapter. Eliaphaz also treats Job like a sinner but tells truths about human nature. “What is man, that he could be pure? And he who is born of a woman, that he could be righteous? (chapter 15:14)

He's saying that no person can gain righteousness of their own will. Most of his scolding of Job is true for people in general. But his friends haven’t heard from God on how to comfort Job. We can’t apply their instruction in this case. The sum total of their advice is wrong. That’s unlike a lot of the New Testament which points to Christ, the ultimate truth. Read Ephesians sometime, or Philippians. They’re rooted in a clear understanding of who God is and what He demands of us. His attributes and love form the basis for how we, His people, are to live. Kingdom principles fill Paul’s letters.

God’s Sovereignty

Job is a mystery where the title character discovers a universal truth in the end. It’s a foundational book that examines the Creator and His creation. Or better said, it examines our relationship to God as beings that carry His imprint. We don’t understand how He designed the stars or ‘hung the earth on nothing’. But we can know that He is the source of all knowledge and His plan for creation unfolds constantly. God’s sovereignty requires that we come to him in reverence.

It might not be worthwhile to compare Job to Paul’s letters in the New Testament. Nor to compare it to the gospels or the books of Moses from the wilderness years. But I think I’ll always have some reservations about the book of Job. God doesn’t exactly tell Job why he permitted Satan to kill his kids, servants and livestock. We don’t know why, a pious servant who feared the Lord, found himself scrapping boils off his skin. Everything taken was eventually returned by orders of magnitude. Job’s wealth increased after the ordeal. His family was blessed and he “saw his children and grandchildren for four generations.” If he had wealth before the trial, afterwards he became extremely rich.

Conclusion

 That God makes our way prosperous is not the issue. His first covenant was with Abraham, the wealthy trader to whom the Israelites trace their genealogy. Christians do as well since the new covenant.

The struggle in my head is over the ‘game’ that God plays with Satan over a ‘blameless and upright’ man. I can’t shake the comparison to the movie Trading Places with Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd. Two bankers make a $1 bet that they can replace their money manager with another and get the same results. In the process they ruin both men’s lives. It’s a crude comparison I’ll admit, but the story is set up this way.

Or is it?

Maybe the whole point of Job is that we don’t get to ask why. Does God permit some trials in our life to test us? I believe He does. James 1:3 says the “Testing of your faith produces patience”. God reveals some things and not others. He determines our path and directs our way. Don’t listen to advice unless it’s from the Lord. But you might not get an answer to your "Why?".

 

Of Gloves and Hats: Training in January

 

Cold Weather Running 

It’s looking like a cold week here in Tulsa. But it’s January, so if not now then when?

We’ve had some seriously cold weeks in February over the last couple of years. Hopefully the bitter weather is gone by late February this year. The older I get the less I like the cold. Up north it was even worse. Even here though, the temperatures will certainly drop enough to be dangerous. The lows are supposed to be in the single digits on Sunday and Monday of next week. My running group jogs on Saturday morning. If it’s even into the teens, I think they should cancel. The wind is almost always impossible to push through, or keep off your face.

Not many of us have those gator neck things that go up over your mouth. No I won't buy one for what could be one day. At a certain point though, is it worth it? Not every run should be comfortable of course. We can’t just run when it’s sunny and dry. The nasty weather plays a part in toughening up your body. But at some point, it’s too damn cold. Running in icy wind is just dumb. You’re asking to get sick. Use a treadmill. Or just wait a couple of days and make up the miles on a better day.

 I add extra miles before the race anyway.

The second half of the training cycle forces me to increase my distances. I started doing this last year. If we were scheduled to run 16 miles I’d do 18. If the schedule said 18 I'd do 20 or 22. Naturally this was in the last month. We don’t reach those big mileages until quite late.

I learned that my body will go farther when I prepare for it. January and February are tough because I miss a lot of those outside training days. It’s not just the cold and wind, it’s also the darkness. If I ran after work I could probably mitigate some of this. Runner’sWorld meets at 5:30 on Monday and Thursday evenings. But it’s tough for me to get across town in such a short window of time. I can’t leave work until 5:00. I’ve never tried to make it. It would mean changing clothes quickly after and fighting through traffic. Having a gym to run at allows me to put in miles early and rest easy in the evening. Most of the runners hold their nose at the thought of using a treadmill, but it doesn’t bother me. It’s all mental for them. They don’t like the boredom of running in place and staring at a TV.

I’ll admit it feels like a longer run, but by changing up the speed and elevation it breaks up the monotony. I will jog through the neighborhood and along the river path again when the weather gets more amenable. Saturdays are still for group runs with the crew. But we also start between 7:00 and 7:30, which is later than I would run by myself. We usually get some morning light right after that as well. Even in the darkness, there is something about going together as a group that makes the elements seem easy to conquer.

I guess that's all mental for me. It feels colder in the dark even when it's not. 

I looked back at some of my running blogs recently. The weather might be the most talked about issue for me. Whine much? Sorry, I guess it’s kind of the X factor in training. Next is the pace, and finally the food question. Others might arrange them a little different however.

As for pace, I can't seem to settle on an appropriate speed. The program director insists that you should run 45 seconds to a minute slower than your race pace. But how does one develop a race pace? It’s not like we’ve all run a lot of marathons. Besides, there is such a thing as tempo running and speed work for the midweek stuff. The rule of thumb seems to be, run slow on the long Saturdays and do faster work the rest of the time. That’s where I’m at now. The biggest change for me has to be in diet. I’m convinced that my diet is off somewhere. I’m looking at knocking off between 20 and 30 minutes on the next race. I’ll probably need to lose some weight as well. 

If I stop focusing on the weather so much I’ll be able to add calories or something. Saturday morning is just a few days away. Wish me good luck and warm thoughts.