I ran 10 miles today with a double baby jogger. At church tonight I cried as we sang praise songs realizing what God has given me.

Now I know most of you say, "yeah, I'd be crying too if I ran 10 miles..." But if you knew me you'd know ...it's just a part of me to run.... And the older I get the more I love it and appreciate every step I am able to take.

I say that because my body has been riddled with pain over the past 15 years. To begin with I struggled for years after college with plantar faccii which can cause severe pain at the front of the heel where the muscle and ligaments attache. God lead me to a Christian chiropractor that adjusted my feet which took all the pain away where I have never had any trouble with that since.

I also struggle with a type of degenerative disease called ankylosing splonditis (A type of arthritis) that I now control totally by my diet (which doctors don't like to beleive). I have to eat extremely healthy (organic, not much meat) and have to absolutely stay away from nighshade vegatables (green peppers, eggplant,...), potatoes, and yeast breads. Now if you think about it, that is pretty much the American diet. I lived off bagels and potatoes during college and my 20's. Anyway after my fourth child and alot of heel pain (which the doctors also can't diagnose - which I think is caused by fallen arches due to pregnancy), I praise God for every step I take.

I was planning to run 7 easy miles today around our country block since I was going to have to take two of my kids in the baby jogger... and when I was coming to the normal turnoff to our house, I felt God tugging at me to go straight at the crossroads. I thought, "that is crazy, I had just ran 8 miles the day before with the baby jogger and today was suppose to be an easy day." But I kept feeling like I was suppose to go this way, so I did... and not only did I get the awesome feeling of completing a 10 mile run at a good pace pushing an extra 75 lbs., but we passed a group of about 9 covered wagons, which as a beginning homeschool mom, is a very exciting visual lesson of what people rode in before we had cars. My kids loved it and so did I. I even called my husband on my cell phone (I take one for emergencies like flat tires, heat exhaustion, tired :-) and asked him to bring our oldest child which is my newest homeschool "guinei pig", since he is such a visual learner and would never forget the lesson.

So I sit back even in more awe of God and how much He cares about my dreams (running in the Olympics) and my joys (homeschooling)... even if they often sound a little crazy to everyone else. The Bible says, "Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart." I am a living testimony of that... and I even get to go to France to be a missionary. I am speechless.