Reflections of a Running Reverend

As I came to work last week, I found this welcome sign on the sidewalk at the entryway to the building. It was a welcome home greeting from the folks of East Anchorage UMC for one of their pastors, Fa'atafa' Fulumu'a, who just got back from attending the Course of Study for Local Pastors at Claremont School of Theology. Pastor Tafa, who graduated this summer, was gone for a couple of weeks and this was one of the many ways his congregation said "congratulations and welcome home." This sign reminded me of sidewalk signs that adorn the course during a race. Many people get very creative in supporting their runners. I've seen sidewalk chalk of different colors saying encouraging messages. I've seen personalized and handmade banners and posters. One of my all time favorites was a sign left on a secluded section of a trail that said, "Run, stranger, run!" Now some people take it to a whole new level. I've seen somebody blast...

So last week's post was about establishing a daily life and work rhythm (see Finding my Rhythm ). I had just posted it, was driving home and determined to live-out what I had just written, when my phone rang with the news that our colleague, Rev. Linda Jean Myers, had been brought to the ER as she was complaining of dizziness and shortness of breath. When I got to the hospital, she had already passed away. I spent the rest of the afternoon and late evening with her husband Ron and their older daughter Rachel. I remember driving home that night trying to make sense of it all. I also recall thinking to myself, "There goes my rhythm. There goes my schedule for the rest of the week." I knew this concern took precedence over anything I had already planned to do. I now had to plan a memorial service and a sermon for that, provide pastoral care for the family and prepare another sermon for Sunday at Chugiak (Linda Jean's church) as well as provide pastoral ca...

I am a distance runner in my own right. I ran 3 full marathons last year and am right now training for my first ultramarathon (49K) next month. And having trained for running long distances, I have found that I don't usually find my pace until after the 3rd mile. The first couple of miles are the most difficult for me as I struggle to find my rhythm. The excitement and anxiety of the starting line pumps my body with so much adrenaline that my timing is off. I try to keep in pace with the pack, pushing me to run at a pace I am not used to. It is in mile 4 when my body settles into a comfortable tempo that I could sustain for the rest of the race. Danny Dreyer, in his blog ChiRunning , says " Your body loves rhythms ... it thrives on them. Your heartbeat, your breath rate, your need for rest are all based on rhythms that occur naturally in your body or that you've established in your life. The more rhythms you establish, the better your body likes it. When you...

More than a year ago, I set-up a blog intending to write spiritual reflections about my, then new-found, love for running. It never happened. Between my pastoral responsibilities, my role as husband and father, and training for my first marathon, I was too busy and did not go beyond reserving the blog name, "Reflections of a Running Reverend". I did run my first marathon last year (as well as my 2nd & 3rd). But my blog never made it past the "starting line." Today, I find myself at another starting line as I officially begin this new role as Superintendent of the Alaska United Methodist Conference. My predecessor, Dave Beckett, ran the race with perseverance and passion. And he ran it well! Now the baton is in my hands. My prayer is that I would handle this baton faithfully until it is time for me to pass it on to the next person in line. As I stand at the starting line of this new role, I thought it would be a great time to start blogging as well. T...