Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Breathe

It was a beautiful Friday afternoon as we arrived in Denver. The temperature hovered near 70 degrees in this late September evening. As a college freshman I was excited, having only been to Denver with my parents in January 1978. Unfortunately, I had a cold and suffering from my first and last bout with poison ivy. Despite this, I anxiously awaited running in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in beautiful weather the next morning.

As my teammates and I gazed out the downtown Denver hotel windows Saturday morning, we quickly were reminded of that old phrase, “What a difference a day makes.” The ground was covered with snow, the temperature dropped to 30 degrees overnight. Good thing we brought along warmer running gear. We boarded the school vans and traversed the 60 miles south to the Air Force Academy outside of Colorado Springs.

Frigid air once again greeted us as we piled out of the van onto the course covered with a blanket of snow. The effects of altitude’s decreased air density were quickly noticed as we warmed up, touring the course. Some suggested inhaling twice for every exhale; however I found this method less than beneficial. Eventually, after the women’s race, we did our final sprints from the starting line, including taking off our sweats. I do not like cold weather. The Starter’s gun sounded, with many runners in a flurry, especially those from perennial powerhouse Adams State.

Before reaching the first mile marker of the five mile course, I struggled to breath. The altitude, combined with a plugged nose and congested lungs, made breathing most challenging. Efficient breathing is necessary for running fast. Our muscles require oxygen; lack of oxygen reduces our endurance. Needless to say, I ran poorly, as did most of our team. In cross country, the winning team is the one with the fewest points as the determined by adding the places of a team’s first five runners. We scored more points in this one meet than my high school team scored accumulated in the nine meets of our senior season. Much of our competition was from high altitude schools.

Life is similar to this race; lack of breath hinders our performance. We are unable to perform well when we fail to allow the Holy Spirit to breathe in and through us. The Holy Spirit breathes through us when we are in scripture, prayer, and worship.

Yes, I struggled to perform at the Air Force Academy’s 1985 cross country meet due to my inability to properly breathe. However, I struggle even more when I fail to allow the Holy Spirit to breathe through me when I neglect, scripture, prayer, and worship.

Make it a Great Day in Christ!
Rick
http://www.rickemeyer.com/

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