Rock N' Roll Virginia Beach - More To Life Than PR's

Pastor Rich running over to see his wife Katorah

This past weekend at the Rock N’ Roll Virginia Beach half marathon I broke no personal record, the weather was horrendous, and the race itself was a very difficult time for me personally, YET WE CELEBRATED!  I say we because I was not alone at this race…I was with three pastors who have all gotten serious about honoring God with their physical health.  So when I say we, I mean Pastor Rich Griffith who has lost 60lbs since January of this year! Pastor T.J. Wolfe who has lost 90lbs, 45 of those since January of this year! AND Pastor Josh Simpson who has lost 30lbs since March of this year!

The Team!

If this race was about me, if I was focused on a PR it would have been a very, very disappointing trip!  In fact it would have been difficult to forget the day…No, this day will not ever be forgotten…because the day was about something so much more important!

The day wasn’t about me.  It wasn’t about a PR.  Sure, any runner knows that PR’s are GREAT!  We love days that we run faster, or even further then we ever have…but this day was about 4 guys coming together to celebrate life and see people from another country, another continent (Africa) get blessed with the gift of life (Water wells) for their communities!

Pastor TJ Wolfe and Pastor Josh Simpson

I cannot put into words how special the weekend was.  What it meant to the WORLD!  What it meant to the Kingdom of God!  Four dudes who NO ONE would have ever guessed would run 13.1 miles together, and they did it in 81+ degrees, with the humidity making it feel mid 90’s, and a dew point of 77.  And we did it WELL…

As I watched Rich, T.J., & Josh cross the finish line I was the one being blessed.  These guys are a joy to coach, and whether they realize it or not they’ve impacted me as much as I have them, I am sure of that!

I love running fast…I love setting PR’s…I train to do so…but September 2^nd, 2012 will go down as one of the greatest running days of my life, not because of anything I accomplished but because of a team that I was (and hopefully continue) to be a part of!  Well done guys…Well done!