Complete 500 miles on foot (running, walking, elliptical, hiking).

I ran 11.6 miles this week, 6.1 miles of that being today. It was my longest run ever (not by much, but still the longest) and it felt pretty good. I’ve finished 34.6 miles this month and will clear 37 miles by the end of the month. That brings me to 41.9 miles of running distance. Add in my walking and elliptical workouts from January while I was recovering from an injury and I’m at 51.7 miles for the year. That leaves me with 448.3 miles left to cover in 10 months.

Get body fat to 20% or less.

According to my scale, this isn’t changing much yet. But I’ve given up sweet tea and sugary soda for Lent, so hopefully that number will change a little over the next month or so since I’m drinking a lot more water and working out more now.

Complete 2 more 5ks, 1st 10k, and 1st half marathon.

Based on how my six miler went today, I’m going to start training for the Nashville Half Marathon. I won’t be signing up for it until about mid-April since the price isn’t going up any before then. That will give me enough time to really decide if I’m going to be able to do it, or if I need to wait until later in the year and train a while longer.

Read 15 books

I started reading “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” (Amazon affiliate link) last week. It starts slow, but I’m at the point where all the reviews of it say it starts to pick up and becomes much more difficult to put down. I figure I’ll be done in a couple of weeks with this one.

Hand-write all of Proverbs

It was a busy week for me with several late nights, so I only wrote a couple of nights this week. I started Proverbs 15 this week, so about half way done now.

Tithe regularly

Still keeping up with this one. I could make it an auto-pay (which I’ve done in the past), but I actually like writing a check every two weeks for this. It keeps tithing from feeling like just another bill that pays out automatically when it’s due. I want tithing to be a conscious decision on my part.

Become debt free

Made another decent payment on this goal this week. Really can’t wait to mark this one off this list.

Be sure to check out my post on week 1 of “The Comparison Trap” as well as last week’s message from North Point.

I wonder if…? It’s a whisper that we’re all familiar with.

It’s a negative thought that can be crippling if we spend too much time focusing on it. This isn’t something that we learn over time, it’s a question that is written into our very being. It’s a question that comes out of a longing for something that is missing.

When the time came to completion, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the law,  to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. (Galatians 4:4, 5 HCSB)

Because we are born under the laws of man because of the separation between man and God, we sense that something is missing so we look for something to tell us that we’re okay. As Andy put it on Sunday, “There is enough of the law of God written in our heart that we know something isn’t right.”

We are meant to live under the law of God, law of perfection and completion, but because Adam and Eve screwed that up–and because we keep screwing it up–we end up living under the law of man instead. We know that the law of God is better for us, but it’s too difficult, if not impossible, for us to live in that place. But because we’ve been redeemed, we know that we’re missing out on something great, so we look for affirmation.

If you had _________, you would still wonder.

If you had a job, you would still wonder if you were good enough at it.

If you had more money, you’d still wonder if it’s enough.

If you were running a successful non-profit, you would still wonder what impact you’re really having.

If you were in a relationship, you would still wonder if you could be a better boyfriend/girlfriend/husband/wife.

Because of the break between Creator and Creation, there is insecurity in our lives that goes to our soul. I know that God is enough, but I still find myself needing to have more, to be better, to be affirmed by others for my actions, because I don’t always believe what I know to be true.

And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ” Abba , Father!” (Galatians 4:6 HCSB)

“Abba” is an Aramaic word. It didn’t translate to Hebrew or Greek when Paul was writing Galatians so he used the original Aramaic word that Jesus used to describe God:  “Abba”. It means Dad or Daddy. It’s an intimate word that implies much more than just a casual relationship with a parent. I only refer to my dad as “father” when marking our relationship on some official document. I’ve never called him and said “Hello, Father”. Jesus used the word “Abba” when praying to God on multiple occasions.

The gap between us, Creation, and God, Creator, leaves us wondering “what if” and it leaves us comparing ourselves to other people.

Andy asked a couple of questions at the end of his message that I really liked.

“Who do perfect parents compare their children to?” No one. As Andy said, even average looking parents with a baby that no one else thinks is cute or adorable will still think their baby is the most beautiful child ever born. New parents don’t think to compare their child to anyone’s child. No other baby matters in that moment.

“Who does your heavenly Father compare you to?” No one. No one else matters in our relationship with God and there is no one he will compare us to. We are His. “You are fine because you are mine.”

Take your cue about you from the One who made you, loves you, and redeemed you.

Now for the summary of my goals this week.

Complete 500 miles on foot (run/walk/elliptical).

This week I was able to to increase my mileage to 10.19 miles over three days. I did my first two runs outside this week since we had great weather and did a 4.65 mile run on the treadmill at Lifetime today since it’s cold and rainy.

Complete several run races.

I’ve been hoping to be able to do the Nashville Half-marathon at the end of April but training isn’t going as well as I want so I may have to wait another year for this race. I definitely want to find a 5k in the next couple of months.

Read 15 books.

Finished reading “Rework” this week (finally). Excellent book that you should read if you’re any kind of product-based business. I’ll be starting “Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption” (affiliate link) in the next couple of days.

Handwrite all of Proverbs.

Two-thirds of the way through Proverbs 14. To sum up Proverbs so far:  “Listen to your mom and dad, avoid idiots, don’t be stupid, bad people will get what’s coming to them, pay attention.”

Tithe regularly.

Still on track with this one. I think this is the most consistent I’ve even been with tithing. I don’t miss that money at the end of the month at all.

Become debt free.

Two student loans left. The next one will be finished in early March and then it’s into the home stretch. If anyone would like to help me reach my goal sooner, let me know!

Tonight started week one of “The Comparison Trap” with Andy Stanley. If 2012 continues with the trend of every other message this year, it’s going to be a heavy year at North Point. No one will be able to say that it’s a “fluff” church. Every week has left me with something to think about and this week is no different.

It’s in our nature to compare ourselves to other people. We simply can’t help it. If you just thought to yourself, “I don’t compare myself to others”, you just did. You just compared yourself to me because I do compare myself to others. It can’t be escaped.

I took a lot of notes during Andy’s message Sunday night but for now I’m only going to post the questions that he finished his message with. The entire message is worth watching later this week and you can watch it here or here when it’s rebroadcast this week.

Are you exhausted from trying to keep up with ________?

Are you broke from trying to keep up with ________?

Are you allowing what others have to keep you from enjoying what you have?

Are you allowing you don’t have to keep you from enjoying what you do have?

Parents:  Do you enjoy your kids or are you driving them crazy because you compare them to what other people’s kids are doing and achieving?

Married people: Is it possible that your spouse feels alienated because you constantly compare them to someone else’s spouse?

Who would you secretly enjoy seeing fail?

Are you chasing the wind and trying to catch it with both hands?

You can’t love someone and push them to perform like someone else. It’s impossible to love someone if you would celebrate their failure.

Jesus responded to people who tried to compare him to people:  “I’m just doing the will of the Father.”

1. Complete 500 miles on foot (run/walk/elliptical).

Ran 8.52 miles this week. 48.7 miles run. 1 mile walked. 8.8 miles on the elliptical. 58.5 miles total. 441.5 left to go. 322 days, 46 weeks left. I need to average 7 miles per week. Unless I get hurt again that will be easy.

5. Handwrite all of Proverbs.

Almost done with the first 12 chapters of Proverbs. Missed a couple days this week.

6. Tithe regularly.

Forget to take my tithe check with me to church today, but the money is set aside for it and will be taken care of next week.

7. Become debt free.

So close. Can’t wait to get there in just a few more months.

How are your goals going?

Click here to read “Vengeance Part 1″.

Stop what you’re doing right now and think about the last time someone hurt you? What happened? How do you feel about it now? Not how you felt then, but how do you feel now?

Are you angry at the person who hurt you? Would you be fine if you never heard from that person again?

This week John Woodall finished his two part series on Vengeance at North Point. (Click on the image at the top to go watch both parts.) His message was built around a simple three letter acronym and two possible outcomes.

Hurt — W-A-R // WIN or LOSE

W

“When you get hurt you have to wrestle with it.”

Wrestling with our hurt allows us to deal with the hurt and the person who hurt us. Don’t sit around ignoring the hurt or wondering what you should do about it. Get up and deal with it. By wrestling with our hurt, we allow ourselves to heal from the pain of that hurt. We can mend broken relationships, or we can end bad ones properly.

John quoted his dad (I think):  “Be properly concerned about it, but don’t be overly concerned.” Don’t let what someone did to your eat away at you forever. If you don’t wrestle with the hurt, it’s going to win every time.

A

“Get advice.”

Plans fail when there is no counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

Proverbs 15:22 HCSB

You might know a lot (I know I do), but sometimes another person’s perspective is what you need. Find someone you trust and talk about what’s hurting you. Don’t gossip about it. You’re not there to belittle (see part one) the person who hurt you. You’re there to get advice about how to deal with the hurt.

One of the side effects of getting advice from someone you trust is that the person isn’t going to be afraid to step on your toes a little. (This is a different kind of hurt that is actually good for you. Having your feelings hurt a little by someone you trust helps you grow.) Pay attention to what you get defensive about. John pointed out that these are generally the areas that you need to deal with to work through your hurt.

R

“There is a time for Response.”

When pride comes, disgrace follows, but with humility comes wisdom.

Proverbs 11:2 HCSB

That verse was actually from the portion of Proverbs that I reached last night while working on my #FinishYear goal of hand writing Proverbs. Maybe I need to think about this verse a bit more.

“When pride enters a relationship, it’s only a matter of time before it leads us to disgrace.” One of the areas that we–me–tend to get defensive about are points of pride in our–my–lives. Someone is better at something than you are and you end up getting mad about it. Or someone gets picked for a team instead of you even though you’ve been practicing endlessly. Or your friend gets a job and you’re still looking.

Guys, we’re much more likely to let our pride get hurt. It’s in our nature to be proud. And that’s OK. But when we let that pride reach unhealthy level it can destroy our relationships if something causes it to get hurt. You can still be proud of your accomplishments without having to be the best.

War only has two outcomes. You either win or you lose. When it comes to warring with our hurt, we can either choose life or death. We choose whether we are going to surrender that hurt to God (life) or if we’re going to hold onto that hurt until it hardens our heart (death) towards the person/people who hurt us.

If you don’t surrender your hurt, something in your die. I can’t be avoided. How many stories have you heard about siblings who had something happen to them as kids who haven’t spoken to each other in decades? Or children who don’t talk to their parents because of something that happened to them when they were younger? Or ex-spouses who speak nothing but hate about their ex? Those people aren’t living great lives. Something in them is dead.

“Lord, not my will, but your will be done.”

Don’t let your hurt kill you. Make it right with the person who hurt you, or allow yourself to forgive them and yourself if you can’t make it right with that person directly.

Logged 4.29 miles in the last week. Both runs were outside and felt really good. Pulled out a 9:18 mile for the first mile in my second run. That’s one of my better first mile times.

4. Read 15 books.

I need to pick up “Rework” and finish it. Haven’t touched it in a week.

5. Hand-write all of Proverbs.

Missed Saturday this week. It’s the first time I’ve missed a day. I was driving to Tupelo and didn’t get in until really late and just went right to bed.

7. Become debt free.

Cashed out a CD last week and made extra money this weekend on a freelance gig. Final payoff might be in April now. Might make the final payment on my 25th birthday. That would be a great way to celebrate!

Vengeance: The infliction of pain on another in return for a hurt or a wrong.

This week at North Point, John Woodall (Twitter), the Director of Married Community Groups and former Care Director, spoke on the topic of “Vengeance.” Continuing in the trend of the other messages at church this month, John’s was another reality check.

Are you aware of your subtle ways of taking vengeance?

“Hurt happens.” We’ve all been hurt and we’ve all hurt someone. And it’s human nature to want to get back at that purpose, to seek revenge, vengeance. We want to inflict pain on those who hurt us.

When I think of the word “vengeance” I think of scenes from movies when the bad guy gets what he deserves. The hero has been wronged, or someone he loves has been hurt, and the bad guy(s) have to pay.

John said that his wife defines vengeance as: “What I enjoy doing to people who hurt me.” When something wrong is done, someone has to pay.

However, vengeance isn’t always a really elaborate reaction to the person who hurt us. Sometimes vengeance is much quieter.

We withdraw.

We belittle.

We hold a grudge.

We suppress.

But as Christians, we’re instructed to go about this an entirely different way. “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Try to do what is honorable in everyone’s eyes” (Romans 12:17 HCSB). And Paul wrote to the Christians in Rome who were being persecuted: “Friends, do not avenge yourselves; instead, leave room for His wrath. For it is written: Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay, says the Lord” (Romans 12:19 HCSB).

We are not supposed to take our own revenge against people who have wronged us. God will properly avenge any wrongs that have been done. Our job, as Christians, is to

Engage, not withdraw.

Be humble, not belittle.

Let go of things, not hold a grudge.

Process and not suppress.

Giving someone the quiet treatment or a cold shoulder because they were a jerk to you does no one any good. Instead, engage with that person and fix the relationship.

I’m really guilty of belittling people. When someone makes me mad or does something I don’t like, I’m probably going to say something about it…to everyone else. I will do my best to tear that person down in subtle and not so subtle ways. Instead of doing that, I should really just shut up about the problem I’m having with someone and engage with that person.

I know some people who can hold grudges longer than the other person will even remember the incident. And from personal experience, I know that most grudges are usually over really stupid things. It seems like it’s easier to deal with big issues than it is small issues, so we just hold a grudge against the other person. This often plays out in passive-aggressive behavior against people whom we interact with and are the subject of a grudge.

Sometimes, instead of dealing with a problem, we shove it way down inside of us. Eventually it works to the top and someone is the innocent victim. I usually like to deal with a problem as soon as I can, but sometimes circumstances prevent this. Because I want to personally move on, I’ll bury the issue until something triggers a response to it again. It can get ugly.

What about you? Which of those four types of vengeance are most guilty of? Is there anyone in your life who you have shut out because they wronged you in some way?

Today marks the beginning of the fifth week of FinishYear. If you haven’t been following along and don’t know what the FinishYear is, read my first post about it and catch up on my progress so far.

1. Complete 500 miles by running/walking/elliptical this year.

Since last week I’ve run another 4.6 miles. I keep having little twinges of pain in my right shin, so I haven’t been able to increase my mileage the way I’d like to. I’ve also logged another 3.7 miles on the stationary bike and 0.7 miles on the elliptical. I had a lot going on last week and didn’t make it to the gym as many days as I normally do. That brings me to 20.85 miles so far. Leaving me with 11 months to log 479.15 miles. Better get moving soon!

4. Read 15 books.

I slowed down after finishing The Hunger Games series. I started “Rework” last week and I’m only about halfway through it. I’m well on track to finish 15 books this year, so no need to rush things.

5. Hand-write all of Proverbs.

Day 29 and I haven’t missed a day yet. I’m almost done with the first 9 chapters of Proverbs. Should be done with this around the beginning of April.

6. Tithe regularly.

I realized this week while working on my debt payoff plan that I needed to make some adjustments to tithing. I was forgetting to tithe out of my freelance income. It’s not much money, but it doesn’t matter what the income is, I still need to give 10% of it.

7. Become debt free.

I’m down to two student loans: $3,813.35 to the Department of Education and $4,931.39 to Nelnet. I had a couple of checks from freelance work in December and January that I put towards the Nelnet loan. That is a bit off course for the debt snowball method, but getting under the $4000 mark on that loan is a a mental goal just to make it seem it seem more achievable.