Life is either a daring adventure or nothing

Crazy enough to run a marathon?!?!?

Just want to share a personal reflection written a few months back when I took part in the Standard Chartered Singapore Marathon. It's a bit lengthy, but may you be inspired....

STANDARD CHARTERED MARATHON 2005
(What it meant for me)

Pre-Marathon personal thoughts (dated 4th Dec 2005 1:00am – Home, resting on my bed)

Running in this marathon is NEVER about personal glory. In fact, I rather be chasing soccer ball on the pitch for 42km than jogging and walking monotonously for that distance! I believe this marathon goes beyond just challenging my physical limits, but to also reflect also about the truths of the Christian journey of faith. I hope to set an example to all my spiritual children that we all can dare to believe God for the impossible, dare to be different from what the world speaks to us, and dare to trust God to lead us into victory! Finishing strong is NOT impossible, it is only a matter of whether we are willing to trust God or not. Easier said than done… we shall see what happens in 12 hours time… who will have the last laugh?

Post-Marathon personal thoughts (dated 4th Dec 2005 4:00pm – Home, resting my aching legs)

10km, 11km, 12km, 13km, 14km……. Woohoo.. I feel good and going strong…

20km, 21km, 22km…… *Pant pant* Walking, basking in the morning sun and catching my breath

28km, 29km, 30km…… Bananas, powergel, 100plus. Doesn’t make a difference at all. My knees and ankles are aching badly now.

34km, 35km, 36km…… Walking has never been this bad… excruciating pain in both legs….. I REALLY feel like giving up now. Gosh! Why does the last 10km seem like eternity???

40km, 41km, 42km…… Pushing beyond the pain barrier, just keep running with the end point in mind. I don’t come this far to falter and give up. Cheong ah!!!!

Last 100m…. Charging through the last stretch with cheers from my G12 brothers.. Finally!! IT IS FINISHED!!!

This has been a year of faith for me. I set a goal for myself that every month I will have a faith challenge. I have come to a conclusion personally that, if at any point in time of the Christian journey I am not moving by faith, then I am “backsliding”. Harsh, but truth because if everything we do are readily dependant on our own abilities, then we most probably wouldn’t need God anymore. Preaching at NUS mooncake festival outreach (in mandarin), sharing in front of 50-60 youths at Xtreme Teens’ Service, the 21km half-marathon and now the 42km full marathon… these have been faith challenges I set for myself these past few months and by God’s grace I pulled through. Also, I realized that the most significant way to lead my youths would be to step out and set the example of faith for them to see. I must live out the things that I preach about!

Sharing all these not to be “ya-ya” about my achievements.. but rather to give thanks to the Lord for carrying me through and also teaching me valuable lessons through each moment. This 42km marathon has buy far been the most grueling physical challenge for me till date. It seems a mammoth and impossible task to complete. Honestly when I first signed up, many chided and questioned me if I was crazy, why in the world would I out myself through such pain, or am I physically capable for it? Nope, I am definitely not physically prepared. In fact the longest I achieved has been 21km in Sept and ever since then I have not ran anything more than 10km! Even the usual trainings were merely 6-7km.

For me, this marathon has never been about running fast nor competing against anyone. I treat every part of this marathon as a reflection about my faith journey with the Lord. It is always easy to start strong but the crucial part is also to finish strong. Obstacles, challenges and pain are common along the journey, but it is also at that moment where we have to decide whether to carry on or to quit. I see many people (seemingly very fit) along the way who falter, fainted and gave up on the race, and I also saw many who pressed on and finished the race. Some didn’t finish the race, some finished strong.

I ran the first leg of the race with my G12 brother Chee Aik (whom was carrying a knee injury but finished the race with great determination too!) and we ran side by side for almost 14km, chatting and spurring each other on. By then I had begun to slow down, and I told Chee Aik to carry on ahead first and that I would see him at the finishing line. Although we didn’t get to finish the race together, but I knew that despite not physically side by side through the remaining of the race, I was certain that my brother was ahead of me and paving the way, setting the road ahead as example for me to follow. It was a great joy to see Aikky at the 26/28km loop point.. both of us were walking but in high spirits to see each other. Honestly at that point I was on the verge of giving up, wanting to just lie flat on the side rest and chew on the bananas. But when I saw Aikky still going strong, I was motivated to carry on. During the last 10km, whether I was walking, jogging, crawling, everything seems so painful with each step I take. Until I overheard a couple walking past me talking to each other, “Aiyo.. doesn’t matter if people overtake us. Doesn’t matter if we run or walk… most important is we enjoy the whole journey.” Yes! That was the punch line that gave me the boost to go all the way. Many times in our walk with God, we find that it is painful, very religious with rules and regulations, burdened down by monkeys that we shouldn’t be carrying, running by our own strength and get burned out… If our eyes are always on the obstacles and challenges, then we would not be enjoying our walk with God! It is time to focus on the Solution (God) and not the problems!

With this revelation in mind, I carried on my half walk and jog strategy for the remaining of the journey. The pain was still ever excruciating, but there was something burning deep in my spirit that tells not to give up. I reached the final 200m mark and was about to walk my way across finishing line. But I felt prompted to jog across, so slowly I picked up and jogged. At 100m left, I saw my G12 brothers cheering me on from the sideline…I gave it my all and sprinted across the finishing line clocking 6 hours 5 minutes. I wasn’t bothered by the timing… I am glad I have ran, I persevered and finished the 2nd toughest marathon race in the world!

At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter how far a distance we ran.. 10km, 21km, 42km… but what attitude we adopt before, during and after the run. It was a great feeling to finish the marathon (I couldn’t be bothered about the timing.. haha!) but more than that, I hope that the steps of faith I have taken and the valuable lessons I have learnt through this marathon will be an inspiration to many young lives out there.

Be bold and courageous! Dare to step out of our comfort zone and embark on journey of faith, trusting that God WILL lead us! Dare to stand firm for the Lord and be different from the world values! Dare to believe God for the seemingly impossible! With Christ, all things are possible… Do you believe?

So what other faith challenges in 2006? Triathlon? Climb Mt Kinabalu? Bungy Jumping? Well, maybe… but it doesn’t matter what challenge is chosen. What matters is the spirit that is captured. That’s tenacity, that’s perseverance, that’s resilience… that’s FINISHING STRONG!