What I Need

First: While talking to Jason on our ~7.2 mile/1 hour 14 minute run around the scenic loop at Prince William Forest Park in 20 degree weather, he informed me that he was not sure he liked being referred to as Jason "Farley" Pelt by someone else. Even though he called himself this previously I have decided to not refer to him as "Farley" any longer. This now leaves a clear nickname void. So I am in need of some suggestions for nicknames to use when referring to him in this blog. Until such time as I have a acceptable nicname suggested I will refer to Jason as Iceman.

Second: Iceman has decided we would run in the George Washington Classic 10K in Alexandria on February 14. I don't really feel like paying another $30 entry fee. However, if I can get $100 in donations then I get to run for free. The donations support the Alexandria Police Youth Camp, Inc.. Any willing Donors?

Third: If Iceman and I are going to continue winter running. I think I need a face warmer. I don't need donations for this though.
-Maverick

The thing I like about running

You can see your improvement. Today I ran the same distance as last week's second jog. Last week I ran it in 31 minutes and 25 seconds. This week i ran it in 30 minutes and 17 seconds. Next week I may have to run a slightly further distance. I had another moment of genious on the run. Early in the run I started kicking a loose chunk of ice for distraction, then a little later in the run I tried to kick another. This one was frozen solid to he ground. It nearly turned my knee around. Put another star in the should have known better column.

Did I mention I decided to read Ezekiel? Sometimes I read about the prophets and I think, "It would have been cool to be a prophet." Sometimes I read about them and say, "Thank goodness someone else had to do that." What always interests me about reading the Old Testament is to see how God is clearly the same God as in the New Testament. He is not a God that was at one time strict and full of wrath and the later on became loving and full of grace. He is a God that in the Old Testament and the New Testament hates sin and yet shows grace to his people in spite of their sin.

I love book lights

Well... At least I collect a lot of them. Actually I have found that in some cases it is cheaper to buy a new book light than it is to buy a battery. So I have managed to buy somewhere around 10 of them. Of course I can only find about two at once, but I know they are out there. My new favorite one is my newest one. It is good because it uses a standard battery (2 AAA's). What I really like about it is that I can turn it on to help me get to a light to help me get ready in the morning. Then I go to turn it back on so I can find the stairs and it does not turn on. It always does this when I need it the most. This ability to fail when I need it the most makes it my favorite. I like the exercise in probability. Oh well.

If anyone has any topics they would like me to talk about let me know. Otherwise, next week I might blog about my least favorite book light.

Now it is official

Today I signed up for the Marine Corps Historic Half Marathon. Goodbye $60. Hello 13 miles and a T-Shirt. I then went and ran in 30 degree weather with freezing rain. I heard that Jason "Farley" Pelt ran in snow this morning. I could not be outdone. So freezing rain it had to be. I figured out that going forward was not a problem . I did not slip a single time while going forward. Coming to a stop in any short distance needs to be thought out. I nearly slipped and fell. This would have been the second fall today if I had. In a moment of intellectual clarity this afternoon I decided to walk down my steep snow covered driveway in deck shoes. Three Quarters of the way down... I went down. Back to the run... I also found that I was forced to have the turning radius of a volkswagen bug otherwise friction was to little.
Run Stats:
30 minutes 16 seconds
Cold Ears
Frozen hat
Freezing Rain
No falls
One loose shoelace
Two funny looks from neighbors
One word of encouragement from lady shoveling snow
Snow is fun

-"Swayze"

Another Clint Question Answered

What age and experience are necessary for a young man who’s aspiration is to plant churches and is it acceptable for him to stay single if he is qualified in other areas?

I suppose the answer to this question hinges on how you define the purpose of a church planter. Is the purpose of a church planter to collect a flock of people that he can shepherd? Sometimes I think it is. Can the purpose of a church planter be to teach while a group of leaders he has partnered with perform the shepherding of the church? I think this can be true sometimes too. This question really hits on the fact that we often call the preacher pastor. The preacher may not always be prepared to shepherd a church due to age. This does not mean that he might not b gifted to teach or to lead. Come to think of it, I seem to recall that shepherding can also be a spiritual gift (I will have to confirm). This probably hits on one of the problems that can sometimes be found in new church plants. The preacher is gifted to teach, but is not equipped to shepherd. In this situation it is important that the new church planter join with people who can help him shepherd his flock. So I do not believe there is an age or experience in which people could be able to plant churches. I do think however that it is important to recognize that people might come into church planting from different backgrounds and with different giftings. Recognizing this can help the new church planter identify where to seek the Lord in providing for needs in helping him plant a church.

As for if it is acceptable to stay single, the answer is definitely yes. This however is entirely dependent on the person. Paul talks about how it is better to not be married because you get to concentrate on doing more direct work for the Lord. He also talks about how most people should get married because they have trouble with sexual purity and thus could not handle a lifetime of remaining unmarried.

A first long run

1 hour 7 minutes 45 seconds through the scenic USMC Base Quantico OCS Trails starting a little after 7 AM. It looks like we had a temperature of a little over 40 degrees. Very pleasant. I even got a little warm. My new running shirt worked good. And since today's blog is exceptionally boring I am cutting it short. Also I have a two year old tugging on my shoulder.

Do you ever feel like your getting old?

Today I do. After three straight nights of my son not sleeping well. After running twice this week. I decided to have my son chase me around the house like he often does, and also chase him around the house as well. As I started to do that today both of my hips hurt. Then I tried to "bound" up the stairs like a graceful gazelle only to be brought to a quick stop by pain in my hips. If this is not depressing for a 28 year old male, then I do not know what is. So I have made a decision. If I am ever a teenager playing sports again or a young adult playing sports again, then I am going to rest my injuries better. If that day comes I will rest my sprained ankles. I may even ice them. When I get an ovulsive fracture in my hip I promise not to play a soccer game on it. Until that day comes I will have to go on feeling older than I really am. Maybe as I get into better shape things will start to improve. I will now go wipe a tear from my eye.