It has been seven weeks now since the marathon. My wounded foot is still in a mending mode. Healing takes time.
Many have asked about my race. And what I share, what stands out so vividly to me, is not about finishing, not so much the running or crowds, not so much my tripping and falling on the cracked broken pavement in the shadows. But what I remember the most are the three runners who stopped
immediately and picked me up. It was so quick that it was almost like they were
waiting for that opportunity, their eyes and hearts watching, not knowing who, not even knowing me, but rushing forth to help a stranger with a need. I was touched by their kindness.
"Why did they do that?" a friend asked me. They stopped running. They threw off their pace. They took the time to extend an unexpected compassion to me. And then they ran on, I hope a little stronger, a little bit faster, empowered by God for what they did.
And though I don't know who they are, we are forever linked by the kindness and the grace shown to me. We were all changed by it. We are always changed by unexpected love, that which we don't deserve, that which surprises us. ,Kindness is never random. It is always intentional, it is always a choice, and it always costs something.
It made all the difference to me. I will always speak in remembrance of those three runners who I cannot even thank, whose names I don't even know.
And when those three runners are asked about their marathon, the perennial question, "How did you do?" I hope they comprehend that what mattered most was "
What did you do?"
Who has God placed on
my path today?
May I live in such a way that it causes others to ask why
and reveals a little more to this world,
what the grace of God is like.
Which of these three, do you think,
proved neighbor
to the man who fell among the robbers?
He said,
"The one who showed mercy on him."
And Jesus said,
"Go,
and do likewise."
Luke 10.36-37
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