In chapter three the author focuses on what you SEE. While running I have seen some beautiful things – rainbows, wildlife, people out walking, - but is that all that I SEE? The author challenges us to look beyond what we physically SEE in order to SEE the sacred.

If you look at the above picture – what do you see? Do you see a duck or do you see a rabbit? Our eyes and brain probably honed in on one of those images, and maybe it was able to readily see the second image as well. We are exposed to and SEE things through the lens of our life experience, through the lens of our attitude or mood, through the lens of our perspective on life. If it was Easter time you might have seen the rabbit first, if you’re a duck hunter you might have seen the duck first, but in the end it doesn’t matter what we saw first, it matters that we realize that there is more there than what we initially saw.

When I get up in the morning one of the first things I do before I run or after my shower is put on my glasses. My glasses allow me to see the details in things I would not otherwise see. We all put on glasses – the lenses that we look through. Are your lenses rose-colored? Are your lenses dark? Do you have lots of smudges and hurts that you look through? Are you looking through a lens of faith?

When we run we should always be aware of our surrounding – the hazards that are in our way, the people we encounter, the homes that pass – we are aware of where we are and where we are heading. As we run we look around us. I’ve heard of people watching for certain things – trees or fire hydrants or dogs, counting them as they go. I’ve watched others walking or running and set my pace to theirs, or tried to quicken my pace to pass them. We watch, we look, we see, we respond… but what is it that we do not see?

As I run I contemplate, I chew on things. As I run I think about things outside of my physical body. As I run I see God. I see God in my physical ability to do something that one year ago I would not have been able to do! One year ago I would not have been able to run for 40 minutes straight, I would have given up or laughed at you for suggesting that I try it. Today, I can run for 40 minutes and it feels good! The same is true in my prayer life. Years ago if you would have told me to sit in silence for an hour and listen for God I would have not been able to do it. Today, I can and it feels good! As I run and as I contemplate God during my run I open myself up to seeing things that I would not have seen before. I mentioned in an earlier blog that I have not only lost pounds, but emotional baggage too. As I run I have seen God working in me, molding me, chiseling away at what isn’t of Him in my life. When I return from running I don’t want to eat junk food, I also find myself looking less and less towards my vices that keep me trapped away from growing closer to God. I’ve found that I’m not running away from an old way of living, but instead I have been running towards a better way of living and loving myself and ridding myself of baggage that has held me away from God.

When I look in the mirror I don’t see me, I see a child of God!

For contemplation:

  • What do you see when you go for your run?
  • How do you see God in your life today?
  • How are you different from a year ago?