Marathon Training and Giving

I used to love running!

One of my friends, who was not a runner, decided to sign up for a marathon. His training taught me a lot about giving. My friend found that the first few miles of training were really difficult, but after a couple of weeks, a 5K became a normal part of his day. Then, a 10K, and more and more as he gained strength and got used to the workout. Runner’s World says, “That the key to successful marathon training is consistently putting in enough weekly mileage to get you accustomed to running for long periods of time.” Day to day training can be a grind, especially when your goal is a long way off. Slowly adding miles will give you confidence to go farther, and you’ll soon look forward to your workouts! You begin to challenge yourself by trying to beat your best times.

Now the same is true of giving! Starting can be painful. You’re not sure how it’ll work in your budget. You want to give, you know you should give, but regularly doing it seems insurmountable. You know you’re going to have to make sacrifices, and that’s not fun, but since Jesus said it’s better to give than to receive, you know there’s got to be something about giving that you have yet to discover. So you step out in faith…and just do it. Remarkably, the more you do it, the easier it becomes. Soon, it’s such a natural part of your life that you’re able to increase and do so with joy! While I don’t run much anymore, our giving continues to grow and increase as we seek to practice generosity in all ways. 

Now if your giving is limited because you’re overloaded with credit card debt, I recommend Christian Credit Counselors. They’ll create a debt management plan that works for you. For more information call the Crown Helpline: 800-722-1976 or visit online at crown.org/ccc.