Morning workout ministry

8:45 on a Wednesday morning is when I pull up to 52 Cataraqui Recreational Centre. A tiny square concrete building we do not own but are the only ones who make use of it. Wednesday mornings are when I meet a mom from the community to run our weekly 4.4 miles together.

Some mornings she shows up awake and really to conquer the world, other days she won’t even greet me and we begin pacing ourselves in silence. The thing about these times is that it is easy to stay quiet, I mean it isn’t the easiest thing to have a full out conversation while running. Yet it is also the greatest opportunity in my week to intentionally ask questions to the woman and to listen to what can sometimes be endless chatter as I run adding a few hmm and uh huh’s here and there.

Yesterday specifically I felt like I should ask more questions about her personally. She can spend a lot of time talking about her 13 year old son who I am very close with or any of the other neighborhood kids as she is the go to fun adult on the block.

As I started asking significant questions here and there she responded well and was eager to share her struggles, fears and even discussion what causes the fear or what would make her less afraid in situations. As we talked Jesus came up often and she began speaking of how she has had  a new desire to learn more about God because her son has been asking a lot of questions at camp and is coming home full of questions that she is unable to answer but know is also questioning herself. We discussed these questions, along with topics of the distortion of love, good and bad in this world, who made God, where did the bible come from and the questions went on and on.

As our time slowly ticks down and we push each other to the end we finished exhausted and refreshed.