The Lessons Of The Barkley Marathon

WHAT MORE PEOPLE COULD DO WITH MORE OF!

Kim and I watched a horror movie last night called, The Barkley Marathon. I might be the only one who considers this documentary about a race through Tennessee’s Frozen Head State Park a “horror” movie. But consider things from my point of view: Only 40 contestants each year are accepted into this 200km foot race, which includes 5 laps of a National Park with each lap being different. It involves ascending and descending over mountainous terrain. All the while, each contestant is wearing a backpack – as each lap takes between 10 to 15 hours to complete. Runners stop between laps for just a few minutes for napping and calorie refuelling. To put things in perspective, this race is the equivalent of running the Overland Track from Dove Lake to Lake St. Clair and then running back again, and then turning around at Dove Lake and running to Mount Ossa (with the allowance for the fact that Mt. Ossa is only one third of the ascent of Frozen Head State Park)! Only 14 people have ever completed the Barkley Marathon! And as we were watching this horror movie, one of the contestants said something truly stunning to the Documentary maker!

As I watched these contestants jogging up mountains, through forests, along creeks, via drains, and heard them talk about the discomfort (and eventual agony) they have to deal with, I recalled each of my 5-day-plus hikes and the gruelling pain I experienced doing each of them. But then the horror of these contestants’ feats grew as I realised these people were doing the equivalent 18 days of normal-person mountainous-bush-walking in under two and half days! As the contestants progress through the race, they battle cuts, abrasions, bruises, exhaustion, and the breaking of their wills. Curiously, most of the people who compete in this race, and even more curiously, the only people who ever completed the race are those with advanced Graduate College Degrees (Engineers, Chemists, Physicists and the like). I wasn’t surprised to hear this, and probably neither would anyone with a higher degree. The little known reason for this is that higher degrees aren’t so much about intelligence as they are about endurance.

The Documentary gave opportunity for those surviving contestants to share their stories. This was when I was a little stunned by what one of them said. He shared the story of how his father had worked hard all his life and saved for his retirement which was to commence with the trip of a life-time. But then, one year before his father was to embark, he suddenly died. This caused his son to reassess his own priorities. He had previously been a keen jogger. One of his jogging buddies mentioned that he had just run his first marathon. He wondered if he was capable of running a marathon. He gave it a go. After completing several marathons, then ultra-marathons, he heard about the Barkley Marathon (considered one of the world’s most difficult ultra-marathons). As he shared his story, it turned out that the loss of his father was not the only pain he had experienced. He had become accustomed to pain – not just the physical affliction type. Somehow, this gave him the mental strength to be able to endure these gruelling running races. As he was talking, the documentary showed him during this Barkley Marathon – cut up, blistered, dehydrated, running in the dark with a small head-lamp, as he trudged up a hill covered in briars. Then he said it.

“Most people could do with more pain in their lives – seriously!”

He went onto say, “Most people don’t know what they’re capable of. Only pain can reveal it to them!” By testing himself with these ultra-marathons, even with all the pain that they caused, he was discovering who he really was and what he was really made of. To get through the pain he had to endure. By enduring, he was becoming a stronger person.

When I heard him say this, I was initially stunned. I didn’t like hearing it. But he said it in such a thoughtful, matter-of-fact way, that it then made me ponder on it the next day. You see, the past year I have lived with pain. Spinal degeneration and a touch of Trigeminal Neuralgia will do that. Everything I have to do now happens a little slower. I have had to learn to endure. Toward the end, completing the F.W. Boreham Documentary became not so much about documentary film-making as it did endurance. I have now completed 7 out of 10 Biblical Greek exams. I’m a year overdue from completing it. When I do, it will not be a measure of my commitment to Biblical scholarship, as much as it will be about endurance. Preaching through the Book of Jeremiah over the past six or so years has not been easy. It has required doggêd endurance. I can’t run, let alone do an ultra-marathon, and you might share my confession, but we all have to endure something in order to become who we are meant to be.

In the TV sci-fi series, Heroes, Claire does not feel pain. Initially, she thinks this is a wonderful gift. But then she grows to despise it. She no longer feels human. To be human is to experience pain.

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
Romans 8:22-23

Life requires endurance. Marriage requires endurance. Parenting requires endurance. Business requires endurance. Pastoring requires endurance. In fact, it seems that the formula for achievement reveals that the greater the objective the greater the endurance required to achieve it!

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.
First Corinthians 10:13 

As I think about how we can win our community to Christ and see Christ’s church in Legana grow with the fruit of this quest, I know that this greatest of all quests will require extraordinary endurance. Together, we must endure in prayer, endure in our witness, endure in our observance of the Sunday-Sabbath, endure in our private devotions of Bible reading and prayerful reflection, endure in our sacrificial giving, endure in our prophetic stand for righteousness. And if this formula for achieving great things is correct, we will have to endure through adversity, discomfort and pain. The winner of the Barkley Marathon wins nothing other than the glory, but compared to the cost of our marathon to win lost souls from our community to Christ, the Barkley Marathon is a walk in the park in comparison! 

Ps. Andrew.

How To Really Live This Life

PUTTING THINGS OFF

Following Christ is a wonderful adventure. Like any adventure, the things that make this journey so exciting are the twists and turns, the mountains and the valleys, the beautiful scenery, the walks with companions, the times of solitude, the feasting, the battles, the storms, and the pursuit of our mission. It also requires what any long trek requires – lightening our packs. Thus, the New Testament describes following Christ as a walk and it’s a walk that involves a lot of putting off. 

The longer you follow Christ the more of life’s journey you get to experience and enjoy. This life was meant to be journeyed with Christ on the path of life that He has marked out. 

 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. – Matthew 7:14

Geoff, Kim and a reluctant me were beginning our trek along the Port Davey Track. Due to poor weather and visibility the small plane that flew us in there was delayed which meant we were starting our walk near day’s end. Ordinarily that’s not a problem. With appropriate head-lamps a walker can traverse moderately difficult walking tracks in fading light. That is, of course, if the track is clearly visible in broad daylight to begin with. In this instance, the track was overgrown, was not clearly marked, and was not often used. And it was getting dark. The overgrown brush was up to my eye-level and it was a struggle to find the star-droppers which once marked the track. Many people live life like this. Nothing is clear. There are no markers. No one to guide them. And really poor visibility.

 ¶ Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” – John 8:12

We eventually made it to Macquarie Harbour for our first camp of the trek. 

When doing a five or six day trek, every hiker wants to travel as light as possible. When Kim and I did the South Coast Track (which involves going over the Ironbound Range, which my old mate, legs, told me was actually higher than Mount Everest) we were carrying around 26+kg each. That’s a heavy load even on flat, smooth ground, but it’s particularly heavy on rough 60º inclines! This too is similar to how many try to live their lives. They carry a lot of baggage. Unforgiveness, bitterness, past betrayals, disappointments, mistakes and regrets can all weigh a person down and become almost unbearable during life’s ascents. 

 ¶ Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us – Hebrews 12:1

At one point on the South Coast Track, Kim and I had to ascend a thirty-metre high cliff (which also hosted a beautiful waterfall) on about day 3 or 4 of our walk (with two days to go). When we arrived at the top of the cliff we were surprised to find abandoned hiking gear. It looked like someone had not been able to continue on the track. Presumably they were injured  and had to be helicoptered out. They had left their tent and various other essentials. Sometimes in life too when people continue to carry too much baggage it takes a toll on their soul and they are unable to continue on in their life-journey.

 See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no “root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; – Hebrews 12:15

John Newton wrote about the Christian walk, “Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come.” Life has its dangers, it times of frustration, and its road-blocks, as Mr Newton, the writer of the hymn, Amazing Grace, had penned. As we trekked up the Port Davey Track, in the south-west corner of Tasmania’s vast wilderness, we had to trudge through a lot of swamp, then bog. In life, people get bogged down with all kinds of ‘snares’. When we walk with Jesus, He helps us to not only see the track, not only guide us along it, but also helps us get through these times where toil is called for.

Deliver me from sinking in the mire; let me be delivered from my enemies and from the deep waters. – Psalm 69:14

There were a few times on the ‘Track that I had to be pulled out of a bog by Geoff. I, of all people, understand why the Ring of Power  (Lord of the Rings) could not merely by carried by Frodo alone – he needed a ‘fellowship’ of the ring in order to complete his mission. In the same way, such a walk through remote wilderness could be done on your own, but it would be most unwise. In the same way, the Christian walk might be possible to be lived out on your own (as recently many Chinese Christians have had to do for years on end as they were imprisoned for their faith in Christ and put in solitary confinement). But our faith in Christ and our walk with Jesus cannot intentionally be solitary.

 ¶ Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment. – Proverbs 18:1

Travelling for days on end in the wilderness, through swamps, bogs, forests, around and over hills is made all the sweeter by the company travelling with you. It’s like life. There are times when the walk gets so full of snares and toils that while we long for a companion to ease our anguish, we actually withdraw from the sheep-fold and isolate ourselves – thus making our sense of loneliness even more painful. When Kim and walked the South Coast Track, we were two of an unintended group of five. There was safety, companionship, and reassurance in travelling as a small group. Our spiritual walk is the same. We need the ‘temple’ where we all meet together as the early church did, but we also need the ‘home to home’ small group context. It is in our regular home group meetings that we share together, pray for each other, exhort one another from God’s Word, and provide practical assistance to each other in times of need.  

At the end of such a trek we are a little different because of what we have been through on the journey. Our muscles are more toned, our body-fat is a little lessened, our feet are a little tougher, our core is a little stronger. This journey with Christ also produces strength in us for eternity that can not be attained any other way. It reminds me of the young boy watching the cocoon begin to shake. He realised the emerging butterfly was struggling to break free. Taking his pocket-knife, he cut the cocoon for poor butterfly to get out. Standing back, he saw the head then the wings of the butterfly escape its cocoon only then for the butterfly to fall to the ground and die. What the little boy didn’t know was that the Maker had designed for the butterfly to build its initial wing strength from enduring and persisting through the toil of breaking out of its cocoon. In a similar, our being made ‘fit’ for heaven involves the formation of godliness (Christ-like character) through dealing with life’s struggles/challenges/difficulties in this life with Christ’s help, teaching, and guidance. The godliness we form in this life’s journey is the level of godliness we will have for eternity-

for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. – First Timothy 4:8

There is simply no way to form the Christ-like character traits of love, forgiveness, patience, long-suffering, endurance, forbearance, self-sacrifice, diligence, hope, or gentleness, without adversity, trial, setbacks, betrayal, conflict, or discomfort. Pity help the one who tries to walk the road of life without Christ as their lamp, guide, companion, rescuer, provider, or protector. But perhaps greater pity should be felt for those who have come to know Him as Saviour but are still yet to know Him as Friend (John 15:15). 

So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. – John 12:35

Journeying with Christ makes you not just fitter for the life to come, but also for this life. You become a more peaceful person. You learn that in times of need and stress that Christ is right there to strengthen, guide, and lead you through it. You discover that the thing you thought you couldn’t do without are sometimes the very things that Jesus asks you to surrender and to put off. Your thought-life changes. Your heart softens towards God and those around you. Your desires change. The further down the track you walk with Christ the more you realise that life is not about you. You become humbler. You want to be taught – to be corrected. This is why the aged Apostle Paul could write to the believers at Ephesus, and say-

¶ Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds.  They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.  They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity.  But that is not the way you learned Christ! — assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put offyour old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. -Ephesians 4:17-24

The journey of life with Christ transforms us. The seasoned Apostle tells us that it requires, “putting off of our old selves (which belongs to our former manner of living” (Eph. 4:22). Thus, the more we journey with Christ, the more we find that we are putting off. The journey helps us to recognise that often our most natural responses and desires are not Christ-like but are actually harmful to us and others. Instead of asking, What’s in it for me? – we put that off and increasingly think: How can I bless someone else with my presence, time, talent, treasure? Instead harbouring bitterness and unforgiveness toward those who have hurt us, we put that toxic attitude off, and increasingly feel compassion for them instead and even initiate acts of kindness toward them. 

No matter what you’re going through right now, no matter how loved or noticed you feel, no matter what others have said about  or done to you, Christ can be your Lamp, Guide, Companion, Strength, Rescuer, Heart-Healer, Defender, Protector, Provider, and Shepherd. Every time I’ve done a long arduous walk and I near the end of it, my heart lifts when I see the carpark! And while a carpark is poor analogy for heaven, there are some parallels. The carpark marks the end of the journey’s trials. The carpark is not my delight, but it contains the means to my delight. In a similar way, heaven is not my eternal goal, but it is the contains the means for my eternal delight: Christ Himself. The carpark means I can finally rest and in the comfort of my car where I am secure against the sub-zero night temperatures, the snow, the hail, the gale-force winds, the pain of mountainous inclines, the scrapes of rocks and broken tree-limbs, and the sticky brown stuff some hikers call ‘coffee’. In heaven we will truly rest. We will be truly secure. We will be finally free of aches and pains. We will no longer be dogged by regrets or disappointments. All of our deepest longings and desires will be perfectly satisfied increasingly for all eternity! If we learn to put off along the journey now. 

Amen.

Pastor Andrew.