Running With Forgiveness
Lent on the Run — Day 18
“and have clothed yourselves with the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge according to the image of its creator.”
— Colossians 3:13
We are often our own worst critics. As runners—and as people—we can be incredibly hard on ourselves. I know this firsthand. I once viewed my 2022 Richmond Half Marathon as a failure. The training cycle had ups and downs, and race day brought unexpected heat and humidity. I finished, but instead of celebrating, I focused on what went wrong. But was it really a failure, or was I just refusing to give myself grace?
Those of us with ADHD, especially with Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria, know how easy it is to dwell on missteps. I can preach a sermon, see a smiling face, and still convince myself they hated it. But the truth is, God doesn’t keep score of our mistakes. Faith calls us forward, shaping us more into the image of our Creator.
Forgiveness—whether in running or life—is a practice. Statistically, about half our runs will be below average. Some will be great, and some will be tough. The key is learning from the hard ones without letting them define us.
When we linger in the past, we get stuck in what went wrong. But God’s love, grace, and forgiveness are always ahead of us. Moving forward means recognizing where we’ve been, learning from it, and then taking the next step.
Running with forgiveness is recognizing that by the laws of statistics (sure, that’s a thing), 50% of your training runs will be below average So, when you have a bad run, a bad day, or a bad anything—pause, breathe, and offer yourself the grace God has already given you. Then keep moving forward.
Lent Photo-A-Day
For the Whole Series
Don’t forget their will be no devotion on Sunday, keep tuned in for the series to continue on Monday.
