Running as a lifestlye

When a friend and I decided to run the Grandma's Marathon in 2001, I was a freshman in college. After registering we got a notice stating that the race was full. Now what?? Well instead of spending a day running the marathon, we biked from Washington state to New York and raised over $10,000 for a missionary in Argentina. That summer we began a group that would go on to bike through dozens of countries and raise thousands of dollars each year to help a hurting world. Personally I discovered who I was through all that biking every summer. I still bike occasionally in the summer...recreationally, but I run all the time. I have gone on to run 6 marathons and a full Ironman. All because I met the right guy in college and we had a dream together. Running really has inspired my entire life. When I finish a marathon I immediately make plans for the next. I don't give myself a break and I try not make excuses to stay home and not run. I appreciate all those marathoners out there, but I hope that they don't just do it to check it off. I hope it becomes a lifestyle!! We keep signing up for races in our community, getting together with other runners, and treating running as a lifestyle - as therapy! AND thanking God that he has given us the strength to run.