embraced by Grace

This spot is one of my new favorite places in Spokane. I think I heart it for several reasons and some of them you can't see in this picture, which was by the way taken on my phone. This place is within reasonable distance to my house and I have frequented running past it lately. It's on the nearby Gonzaga U campus, and it sits just nicely on the Spokane River. Looking out over the river, you can see a cool view of the downtown area. But my favorite part, is that even though it's smack in the middle of all those things, it feels like I'm in a remote little place. And...it's just beautiful!

When I went for my run this morning I had a lot on my mind. It was one of those "It's so easy to get up and run today because I need to get some energy out" kind of days. Those are so much easier to get started than the "i need to run because it's good for me" kind of days. At church, Sean said something in the message yesterday that is really resonating in me. He was talking about Jacob and his wrestling match with the Lord, which resulting in God blessing him and changing his name. He said that we shouldn't trust a Christian without a limp. (Don't miss this. His point was not about trusting people, but rather that even when you are a royal screw up there is something to be said about wrestling the thing out with the Lord.) It's not about being perfect and walking a flawless life. Let's get in the ring and wrestle things out with the Lord so that we walk out with a new name and the blessing of God. This then sent me back to a message that Joe preached a few weeks ago where he basically said that the opposites of our biggest fear, failure, or defeat, are often the biggest promises for our life when it's turned around.

I love that I can run and get some physical energy out, process some of the things running around in my head, and then park it for a little rest at this spot. Cool huh?