Our Dreams Are Important to God

In January, I saw an announcement that the Ragnar Running Series would be doing their first International Relay... at Niagara Falls!!!!  Wow!!  I felt it in my heart immediately that I had to do it with my family.   A Ragnar Relay consists of 12 runners covering about 200 miles.  In this case we would be circling Niagara Falls!!  Each person on the team runs 3 different times over about a 24 hour period.

There were two reasons my heart yearned for this experience:  Reason #1) I hadn't been to Niagara Falls since I was 7 years old and being around rushing water rejuvenates my soul.  ...and to run around that beauty??  Wow!!  Running is a very spiritual experience for me.  As I push through the physical pain, I turn my thoughts to God and HIS beauties surrounding me.  My children are also deeply moved by nature... they study it every day.

Reason #2) I ran two Ragnar Relays in Utah, and my boys have been requesting to do one too for quite some time.  I wanted them to have opportunities to do the healthy things that their hearts desire.

When I asked Abe about doing the race in January, Abe thought that maybe we should wait to do a different race, so he would have more time to prepare.  I reluctantly put Niagara Falls out of my mind.  Then, a few weeks ago, the thought and desire returned to my heart!  I called Abe at work, and this time he agreed to do it!!  I think he felt my passion and desire, so he supported me even though he would have even less training time.

The next issue would be to find a team of 12 runners by the May deadline.  The race is in June at a time when people already have so many summer plans.  I posted it on Facebook, and I heard back from some who were interested.  In the end, there was only one other person completely committed besides my husband and 3 boys.  That would only be half of a team.

I kept holding on to the idea and desire that pounded into my heart, but it just didn't seem like it would happen.  Yesterday, I started to go to the website to check the closing date and let go of the dream once again.  Instead, I felt like I should check their Facebook page one last time.  I couldn't believe it!!  Someone had posted that they were looking for half of a team too!!  I immediately sent him a message, and he immediately responded!!  With our two half teams together, we were a full team!!!

In one moment I was letting go of a dream; and without any warning at all, the next moment I was in full swing planning our race to fulfill that dream!!  Things can turn around very quickly when we let God be in charge.

As of now... We are all signed up!!  We have permission for our children to run as minors!!  We started the process to get the correct ID's to enter Canada!!  I even learned how to download a GPS training program to my phone that tells me my pace and distance.  That happened just in time for our 1st actual training run- which we did last night!  The weather was absolutely perfect as we ran under the stars together... ahhh... it felt so good.

My heart is happy and amazed that God guided me to go to the right place at the right time.  HE orchestrated every detail!!

My desire to do this race was not a life or death plea... It was a plea for a dream that I felt deep in my heart.  I believe God put this dream in my heart because there will be even more to this experience that I do not foresee at this moment.  I know when God has HIS almighty hand in something, and this was definitely one of those times.  I believe God has many reasons for our life experiences, and I look forward to the miracles that still await from this experience.

I testify that God cares about our dreams, and HE supports our quests that fill our souls.  HE wants our souls to feel the joys of this life.  Listen to your heart... follow your heart and take big, brave steps in the right direction... and then wait for the miracles!!  God is our greatest supporter of that which uplifts us.  I realize that not every dream we have is realized, but the ones that will have the most worthwhile impressions on our lives will be those that are achieved with Jesus by our side.