One of my closest friends knows me better than I know myself. She signed up to do the marathon in Hartford tomorrow and encouraged me to do my 20 mile run beside her and have another friend finish the marathon relay and complete the last 6.2 miles.
Everything about this process overwhelmed me and I delayed signing up for weeks.
Yet that is precisely why my friend said doing this would benefit me - I could the take tomorrow as a trial run of being in a race setting before NYC.
I share this with you as a reminder that the people beside us who know us well, may say something like “sign up for a marathon relay” to which our initial reaction is “nope.”
Yet when the people we love and who love us say something, it’s important we take time to listen, and ask ourselves, “Are they speaking truth to us? Does what they say have our best interest at heart?” If so, maybe we need to pause before reacting and consider their suggestion, as I did.
If you can be quick to speak or react from an emotional state like I can at times, invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we know our “iron sharpens iron, friends who love at all times” friends. And when they speak to us, even things we don’t want to hear, may we be willing to be quick to listen and slow to speak. For our initial reaction may not be the response aligned with what is best for us in the long run, like this experience I pray is for me tomorrow.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Meet Paula and How Cancer Has Impacted Her Life
This is my best friend since Kindergarten, Paula. She is not one who wants attention yet her story is powerful, and another reason why I am running.
There is no one I know whose life has been more impacted by cancer than Paula.
When we were in first grade, her Mom, Debbie, was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer. She was a warrior yet sadly the cancer came back when we were in college and her Mom passed away in 2000.
Her Mom was one of the most generous souls you’d ever meet, volunteering her time to our community like no other. Her presence was huge loss to Paula, their family and our community.
A couple years later, Paula’s Dad was diagnosed with prostate cancer. Thankfully he is doing well yet she has lost others in her family, and a sister-in-law to cancer over the years.
When my mom was diagnosed with the same breast cancer as her Mom, Paula was calling to help get an appointment for my mom asap. And her help, I believe, is a main reason my mom is still with us today.
When I was diagnosed she was right there asking how she could help and coming to treatments with me.
A few years ago, her brother was diagnosed with a rare cancer. His cancer doesn’t have a defined treatment and they are doing what they can to help him heal. He is a warrior, as is Paula.
She is one who loves her people deeply, shows up and would fight the battle for you if she could.
I run for Paula, and all the other caretakers fighting the battle beside their loved ones, and in honor of her brother’s rare cancer fight.
I share this with you today as a reminder that even though someone hasn’t had cancer, it doesn’t mean their life has not been impacted by it.
I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we recognize how cancer impacts so many, including the children, the siblings, the caretakers, etc. May we grow eyes to see and ears to hear their stories, and honor how cancer impacts them too. May we do what we can to love and support them, as they support others.
With love, care and hope,
Shawn
May Peace, not Fear, Rule Our Hearts and Minds
Although I’m smiling here I will admit that I have mixed emotions about the upcoming marathon. I want to be excited but admittedly am nervous.
One of the many lessons I’ve learned along the way is that the scarier path may be the right path for me, and you, but that doesn’t make it easy or smooth.
From the moment I found out I was on team @bravelikegabe for the NYC marathon, I had a wave a panic run through my body. If anyone in my family mentioned the marathon those first couple of weeks I would get the same wave of anxiety and asked them not to talk about it.
It would have been so easy for me to make up a reason to not do say yes. Yet when I looked at the heart of why I wouldn’t do it it’s because I fear not being successful at this. And once I swallowed that truth, I knew I had to step into it because I refuse to let fear make my decisions for me.
Although this isn’t an easy process, I will say by stepping out of my comfort zone, and by doing what scares me, I’ve grown in ways I never would have within had I stayed in my comfort zone.
I share this with you today in case any of you also have a path before you that is scary, unknown, and a less comfortable. If so, I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
No matter how we present ourselves to others on the outside, may we be honest with ourselves where we really are in our hearts and minds. May we acknowledge the fear yet instead of allowing it to rule us, may we turn to God’s word and pray “that the peace of Christ rule our hearts and minds.” And if we choose to take the scarier, less comfortable path, may we remember God has promised to be with us. It may not be easy, yet may we allow it to refine us, from the inside out, and allow it to help us grow closer to God, and into who He made us to be.
With love and hope,
Shawn
A Beautiful View
There are many beautiful views in the world, but this view is one of my favorites.
It was a blessing to have the whole family back together for the weekend💝
I hope you had some quality time with your favorite people too.
With love,
Shawn
There is Value in Rest
Today I completed 17.2 miles in honor of many in our ACC family, and beyond! Small deposits over time are adding up💙
After running and stretching, I went about the day and this afternoon I was so tired. It wasn’t until I saw my Brave Like Gabe teammate Kaila’s post about running and resting, with her dog Al, that I considered resting.
When I saw that second picture (above) I gave myself permission to rest. I cuddled up on the couch later today and dozed off.
Rest is a funny thing. I think I do it yet I also saw today how I don’t always give myself permission to rest when I genuinely need it.
And it’s not just about physical rest. Yes, physical rest is good yet it’s so important we rest our minds, bodies and our souls.
I share this today as Kaila’s post was a blessing to me and I wanted to pass it along to you in case you need the reminder to rest too.
I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we give ourselves permission to rest this weekend - our minds, our bodies, our souls. For when we give ourselves the gift of rest, it is will help us renew and restore what is needed, as my time of rest did for me today.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Be the Light in the Darkness
Recently it’s been beautifully overwhelming to see love flow towards others in need. From the hurricanes to local events, there are people going through really hard times. Yet the light and love that shines towards the darkness is powerful, and transformative.
It’s so interesting to see in these trying times so many of the barriers that divide us are laid down and we see one another as the human beings we are. Judgements are laid aside and people come together for the common good of others.
I wish it didn’t take these hard times for us to do this. Yet may we see this, and learn from it. Let’s come together to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we remember every day people are going through hard things, whether it’s visible to the eye or not. May we make a vow to do what we can to be the light of God’s love towards others, not just when tragedy happens, but every day. Yes, praying for others is helpful and may be all we can do at times. Yet may we also pray to be the hands and feet of Christ, loving others through our words and actions, providing for needs we see. We cannot help everyone and do everything, but we can help at least one person and do one thing to bring love their way, and shine light into the darkness of their experience💕🙏🕯️
With love and hope,
Shawn
Wait with Joyful Anticipation
This morning I was walking with Georgia and she saw friends ahead on the trail and paused. She waited with such joyful anticipation at what was ahead. This moment was a reminder to me to be more like Georgia and to pause and seek what is good ahead with joyful anticipation.
I share this with you today in case you needed this reminder too. If so, I invite you to join me too…
pause. breathe. pray.
Not everything ahead is good, but there is good ahead of each of us. May we seek what is good and wait, or walk, with joyful anticipation with what’s to come, as sweet Georgia showed me to do today.
With love and hope,
Shawn
Walk by faith
I took last week off from running to heal and I was suppose to have done 16 miles for my long run. This week I’m still coughing and although I got a short run in on Monday, my body is needing to rest a little longer. I typically would be okay with this yet I am at a crucial part in my training for the marathon. I know I won’t be breaking any records yet I want to finish what I started. But to be real with you, the doubts have been creeping in.
Tonight I had a thought that pushed back against my doubt. I had this deep seated belief that if God brought me to this marathon He will help me through it.
I’m sharing this thought with you because there are so many people I know facing hard things right now. I want to remind them, and you if you are facing a challenge too, that God is with you. I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
As this song says, may we…
“walk by faith
Even when we cannot see.”
May we trust the one who sees the invisible to do the impossible. May we put the outcome in His hands and take the next step of faith forward with Him by our side helping us through step by step, day by day.
With love and hope,
Shawn
A Divine Appointment in Franklin, TN
While with Kate this weekend we went to a cute town close to Nashville and walked around their main street. In the middle of one of the stores was a prayer room, pictured above. It was so powerful to see this, as it’s not something we’d see often outside a church or home in New England.
I told Kate and Stephen to go ahead and look around. I wrote a prayer and put it on the wall. Then I sat down in the chair and took a stack of prayers to pray over. As I went through the stack, I prayed over each card and then I got to the last one.
It brought tears to my eyes as I read…
“We pray for healing and strength for Shawne.”
For those who don’t know, Shawne is the nickname my family always calls me, and I spell it just like this.
After the week I had fighting off fear from various angles, sitting there in that store in Tennessee and out of all the piles I could have chosen to read, I chose this one, and this was the last card in the stack! This divine appointment is another confirmation for of how God is real, and that He hears our prayers. He is with us, for us, and goes before us, allowing little moments like this to happen to confirm His love and care for us.
I share this because it was such a powerful moment and also to say that I am not unique. God has divine appointments for each of us along our paths. He knows the depths of our hearts and wants each of us to know He loves and cares for us. He will speak to our hearts in a way that will resonate with who we are as an individual. With that said, I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we share the realness of our hearts with God, even if we aren’t fully sold on the fact that He exists - like I did when I first tried prayer on for size fifteen years ago. Let’s not only talk to God, may we also ask for eyes to see and ears to hear Him throughout our days. May we be open to Him working in our hearts and lives, and to the next divine appointment He has for each of us to remind us of His ever-present love and care, as He showed me in this prayer room in Tennessee.
With love and hope,
Shawn
What is on the other side of fear?
It was a week of fighting through fears, and it continued towards to end of the week in a different way, dealing with my fear of flying. Yet this time, what was on the other side of the fear was clear - Kate.
And as we flew from blue skies through hurricane clouds, I was reminded that life isn’t going to always be smooth. There will be challenges - including fear - that can try and stop us from moving forward. And yes the fear can be thick to work through, yet as the turbulent ride reminded me, the challenges aren’t meant to define us but refine us. Fighting through the fear is hard and exhausting yet as this weekend reminded me, usually on the other side of fear is something good we wouldn’t experience if we allowed the fear to win the battle for our hearts. And for me, Kate was on the other side of this fear and I give thanks to God for helping me through it, again.
I share this to anyone else who has fear gripping them in some way, I invite you to join me to…
pause. breathe. pray.
May we never allow fear to win. May we access the resources we have, especially prayer, to help us through. And may we remember that often fear is the cloud trying to stop us from seeing what’s on the other side. The journey through the fear may challenge us, yet as I was reminded this weekend, it will refine us and be worth it.
With love and hope,
Shawn