I tweaked a nerve in the gym, so for the past week, I have been walking in the park.

And as I have walked, instead of honing in on a treadmill or a Peloton, I have noticed the people around me more.

I see tons of variety, but one constant.

Some are sprinting.

Some are jogging.

Some shuffle.

Some walk.

No matter the pace, though, they are all moving forward

This is helping me to focus.

It has reminded me to judge my pace less harshly, and take my activity more seriously.

At the end of the day, I know I’m doing at least one thing right – I’m moving forward.

That is my prayer for you today.

I pray you don’t let the wind, or weakness, or weariness displace you from your goal.

Across the park, I watched a young Asian man coaching tiny kids to kick a mini soccer ball into a pint-sized goal.

At one point, however, when turned toward them, the wind picked up one of the goals and knocked it over.

And he didn’t stop cheering them on.

He didn’t quit.

He just said “look at the wind!” He made adversity an adventure instead of a crisis.

Then, he went over and fixed the Goal: he addressed the problem

And he kept right on going.

“THERE’S ONE MORE! THERES ONE MORE!

RIGHT HERE…GO GO GO

I pray that we would be resilient enough to laugh when life thwarts our plans.

I pray that we would address the problems we encounter without panic or delay.

I pray that resistance today would only encourage us to move forward.

I pray we would persevere.

The last thing I saw was a girl who could have been one or two dressed in a designer pink sweatsuit, going for glory while her parents slowly walked behind her with a stroller.

This kid was gunning, seemingly unconcerned about the prospect of fatigue or failure. She was not monitoring her proximity to her spotters. She was kicking air and taking names.

I pray we would do likewise.

I pray that no matter how much smaller we are, or how much smaller we feel than the arenas we enter, that we would walk in like we belong and take up space.

I pray no matter how new we are to the task, that we would go for it.

And I thank God for those He has appointed to walk alongside us.

No man or woman is an island. None of us are self-made.

We have all been blessed with mentors, whether they stood in front of us in the flesh, or their words and examples blessed us.

We are all blessed with peers, whether we are aware of them, or simply walk alongside them as part of a global movement.

As innovative as we may be, there is almost nothing we do that is unique.

And much of it is cultural, generational, environmental, etc. People subject to the same conditions as us often have parallel or resonant stories.

We are all blessed with people we influence, whether they are followers who emulate us, or neighbors aware of us, or haters who resentfully study us, grumbling the entire time.

I pray today that you run your race.

I pray you finish well.

Let the games begin.

(Photo Credit: Run 4 FFWPU)