Finish the Race
I was recently talking with a colleague in ministry about how this season of ministry feels like it’s never-ending. There are natural seasons and rhythms we all fall into as pastors in our roles at church. For me, it’s the start of school, planning the big fall events, the preparation for the season of Advent, the calmer months of January-March, the sprint of Holy Week, and the chaos of summer. We each have our own rhythms and ways of marking the time that fit us and our lifestyles. But in this season, it has felt like it’s all one long season without a rhythm or a plan.
This friend, a brilliant, young pastor in KY said she’d recently read this image of life in a pandemic: it’s a race unlike any other.
Now, I am not an avid runner. The longest race I’ve ever participated in was a 10K in Richmond before I moved to Atlanta. And while I say that it is on my bucket list to run a half marathon one day, I’m not sure that will ever happen. But while I was in Richmond and preparing for the Monument Avenue 10K race, I joined a training team to have some support and accountability leading up to the race.
We met every Saturday at 8:00AM beginning in January. Yes, you heard this correctly. I voluntarily woke up on Saturday mornings in the cold winter months to drive 15 minutes to the Y and to run. Not only that- I paid $20 bucks to do this (mainly for the free t-shirt). And there were runners of all ages and all skill levels.
We would all start out together, but naturally, some of the group would pull ahead quickly while others would clump together in the middle, and some of us would fall behind. There was only one rule for this training team: do your best. And there was only one rule for the team leaders: never leave a teammate behind. No matter how slow you were, no one ever ran alone.
We trained together for 4 months, gradually increasing our distance and our speed as we each built up our endurance. During the week between training sessions, we had our own runs to get in that would help us continue to build up our stamina; but we also had scheduled rest days so we didn’t overdo it. We had a nutritionist talk with us about foods that are good for runners to eat, and a physical therapist who showed us stretches we could do to keep our muscles from tearing or getting tired, and a shoe store that offered a free analysis of your feet and running style and then suggests the perfect pair of running shoes you could buy at their store.
I’ve never felt more prepared or excited for a run in my life as I did on the day of the 10K race. There were (literally) 25,000 people running. The streets were lined with supporters and bands and various beverage stations. There was even a costume contest, and a whole herd (pack? pride? colony?) of folx dressed up in those inflatable T-Rex costumes. It was hilarious seeing 10 dinosaurs running down the opposite side of the street towards the finish line.
When I finally crossed the line, there were still tons of people there yelling “You did it!” and “Congratulations!” and handing out participant medals and bananas and granola bars. I even saw some of the team leaders from my training team waiting there (having finished their races a couple of hours before) to cheer on our team as we finished. My time didn’t break any records, but I met my goal: I ran the first and last miles of the race, and crossed the finish line with a huge smile on my face and proud of myself.
Comparatively, this “marathon” of pandemic ministry and life is nothing like training for that 10K. This race we are all on is like a marathon that none of us have trained for. We just woke up one day and someone said “start running” and we did. We didn’t have time to find our pace and take it slow. We started by sprinting, trying to cover as much ground as possible. Gradually, we have figured out how to balance Zoom meetings and screen time and virtual church and life.
But there is still something missing. When you are training or running a race, there are mile markers along the way letting you know how much farther you have to go. You know how much longer you’re going to have to pace yourself before you reach the finish line.
We don’t have those markers. At least, not yet. We are all just running the race; some a little faster and some a little slower. But we are each doing our best to find our own pace and keep up with the team. But we have no idea of knowing if we are at mile 24 of the marathon, or mile 10, or mile 2. We don’t know when the next break will come or when we will have to pick up the pace again.
But there are some things I learned from that 10K training team that I think we can use during this pandemic race.
1. Find your team.
Who are the people who will make sure you don’t get left behind. I hope that our church is doing this for our members. But if you find that you are at the back of the group, don’t be afraid to reach out and say, “I’m still here! Don’t forget about me!” Or maybe you are a person who likes to make sure no one is left behind. We would be happy to pair you with some folx to check in on in this season to make sure they know they aren’t forgotten.
2. Make sure you’re taking care of your body.
It might sound silly, but are you eating your fruit and veggies each day? Are you drinking enough water? Are you moving your body in ways that are helpful and not hurtful? Sure, there are days when we just want (or need) comfort food, or when it is easier to throw a frozen pizza in the oven for dinner. But we are in this for the long haul, even if we don’t know for how much longer. Make sure you are doing things that will make it easier to “cross the finish line” when we get to it.
3. Part of taking care of your body means resting, too.
But be intentional with that rest. For many of us, we count binge watching Netflix as rest. And it can be. But that shouldn’t be the only way you are resting. Take some time to sit outside and let your body soak up some sun; have a screen free afternoon (or entire day!) and see what activities you can do instead; spend some time journaling and writing down things you have learned in this time. Find what kind of rest you need, and make it a priority. It can be a time of rest each day, or each week.
4. Be proud of yourself.
I don’t know if any of us have had to live through a situation exactly like this one before. And you are doing a good job! Give yourself some grace if the dishes pile up, or if the kids are bickering constantly, or if you are wearing the same t-shirt for the third day in a row. You are living through an unprecedented time and doing the best you can with what you have. You don’t have to use this time to finish your home improvement projects or start a new hobby. You are doing enough. And that is definitely something to be proud of.
We will make it through this. It will be hard. It will be exhausting. But we can do it. And if there was a way I could give each of you a participation medal or a team t-shirt when we finish this race, I would do it. I am going to take Paul’s words from 2 Timothy and use present tense instead of past.: We WILL fight the good fight. We WILL finish the race. And we WILL keep the faith.
Blessings to each of you on the journey.
Reverend Kristen Koger has served as the Pastor for Children and Families at FBC Decatur since June 2017. Kristen loves working with the youngest of God’s family as she helps them realize that they have some of the most important gifts to offer the family of God. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her dog Dietrich “Bonehoeffer,” cooking, knitting, and playing board games.